# Opt-in consent

> Opt-in consent is permission a person gives by taking a clear, positive action, such as ticking an empty box, tapping a button or sending a message, before their data is used or they are contacted. Silence, pre-ticked boxes and default settings are not opt-in. India's DPDP Act, the EU's GDPR and WhatsApp's business messaging rules all build on this idea.

Source: https://milvao.com/glossary/opt-in-consent · Updated 2026-11-05

## Key takeaways

- The person acts to say yes; doing nothing never counts.
- Consent should be specific to a purpose, not a blanket yes to everything.
- Withdrawing should be as easy as agreeing.

## What makes opt-in consent valid

- India's Digital Personal Data Protection Act, 2023 says consent must be "free, specific, informed, unconditional and unambiguous with a clear affirmative action" (section 6(1)), and that withdrawing it must be comparably easy (section 6(4)).
- The GDPR defines consent as a freely given, specific, informed and unambiguous indication of a person's wishes, by a statement or a clear affirmative action (Article 4(11)), and says it must be as easy to withdraw as to give (Article 7(3)).
- Both tie consent to a stated purpose, so a yes to one use is not a yes to another.

## Opt-in consent on WhatsApp

Meta requires businesses on the WhatsApp Business Platform to get opt-in before messaging people. The opt-in must clearly say the person is agreeing to receive messages from the business, and name the business. Meta also suggests telling people how to opt out of categories of messages.

## Opt-in vs opt-out

Opt-out means people are included by default and must act to leave, such as being added to a broadcast list without asking. Opt-in means nobody is included until they act. For personal data and business messaging, opt-in is the safer model and the one these laws describe.

## How Milvao collects opt-in consent

Members join by sending a message themselves. Introduction requests stay off until a member turns them on, and PAUSE or STOP works at any time. For each request, the member separately allows their number to be shared, and the matched member's Accept is consent to that one introduction. See [who sees what](https://milvao.com/privacy-and-consent). This is general information, not legal advice.

## Frequently asked questions

### Is joining a WhatsApp group the same as opt-in consent?

Not for every purpose. Joining a group shows interest in the group, not agreement to be messaged by a business or to have personal data used for something else.

### Does opt-in consent need to be recorded?

Keeping a record of what someone agreed to, when and to which wording helps you show consent was given. Check the specific duties with an adviser.

### What is double opt-in?

Asking for a second confirmation, such as confirming an email address, or, for introductions, getting a yes from both people before sharing details.

## Sources

- [MeitY: The Digital Personal Data Protection Act, 2023 (Gazette of India)](https://www.meity.gov.in/static/uploads/2024/06/2bf1f0e9f04e6fb4f8fef35e82c42aa5.pdf) (checked 2026-11-05)
- [EUR-Lex: Regulation (EU) 2016/679 (General Data Protection Regulation)](https://eur-lex.europa.eu/eli/reg/2016/679/oj) (checked 2026-11-05)
- [Meta for Developers: Get opt-in for WhatsApp](https://developers.facebook.com/docs/whatsapp/overview/getting-opt-in) (checked 2026-11-05)

## Related pages

- [DPDP Act](https://milvao.com/glossary/dpdp-act)
- [Double opt-in introduction](https://milvao.com/glossary/double-opt-in-introduction)
- [Who sees what](https://milvao.com/privacy-and-consent)
- [DPDP compliance](https://milvao.com/dpdp-compliance)