New Delhi: The Centre on Wednesday issued a notice to Meta regarding the controversial username feature on WhatsApp in India due to concerns about impersonation and fraud, and warned the platform not to roll it out until consultations on the issue are completed “to the satisfaction of the Government”.
It has also directed Meta to furnish a detailed explanation on the username feature, backed by relevant documents, within three days.
In the notice, the government expressed concern that the WhatsApp username feature may “materially increase” cases of online fraud, phishing, digital arrest scams, and impersonation attacks by enabling bad actors to solicit and message victims.
The company has also been told not to launch the feature in India until the ongoing review and consultations are completed.
The move comes as WhatsApp prepares to introduce one of its biggest privacy changes by allowing users to connect through unique usernames instead of sharing their mobile phone numbers. The feature is intended to give users greater privacy and control over their personal information.
Officials are assessing whether allowing users to communicate through usernames instead of phone numbers could create new challenges in tracing offenders while balancing the platform’s privacy commitments.
A WhatsApp spokesperson said the ability to use a username is not yet live and will be rolled out gradually later this year.
“To protect against impersonation, we’ve held the highest-profile names – think public figures, government entities, celebrities, verified Meta accounts – so they can only ever be claimed by their legitimate owners and lookalike derivatives of known names are held as well,” a WhatsApp spokesperson was quoted as saying by news agency PTI.
Users will still need a phone number to use WhatsApp, Meta said, adding that it has built multiple layers of defence against scams into usernames.
