Highlights
- The government has stopped rolling out the username feature in India for now.
- On July 1, the government had sought clarification from Meta regarding this feature.
- Due to this feature of WhatsApp, cases of cyber fraud like digital arrest may increase.
WhatsApp’s username feature will not be rolled out in India yet. The government has issued instructions to Meta not to roll it out. Recently, on July 1, the government had sought clarification from Meta regarding the username feature. The government had feared that cases of cyber fraud and digital arrest would increase through this feature. Meta has submitted its reply to the government on this.
According to the report, the government has prohibited Meta from rolling out this feature in India right now and has said that until the consultation process in this matter is over, it should not be rolled out for Indian users.
What is the username feature?
The username feature of WhatsApp will work like the user ID of other social media platforms like Facebook, Instagram, X etc. In this, a WhatsApp user will see the username instead of the phone number of another user. The messaging platform says that after the introduction of this feature, mobile number will not be required to connect with anyone on WhatsApp.
Especially to add new users to a group, username will be used instead of mobile number. Other members of that group will also not be able to see anyone’s mobile number. They will be able to connect to each other through this username.
The government had asked for clarification
After the launch of this feature, the government had sought clarification from the instant messaging platform regarding the possibility of its misuse. The government asked Meta whether this feature will not promote cyber crimes like digital arrest? In its notice, the government had told Meta that the platform will have to assure that the username feature or other products are not being used fraudulently or misused. If any such feature is misused, the company will have to be prepared for regulatory action. The government had asked Meta to respond in three days.
At the same time, WhatsApp says that the username feature has been brought specifically to improve the privacy of the user and not to weaken the privacy. The company has put in place a number of security measures to prevent misuse of the platform, including impersonation detection systems, limits on the number of new people an account can contact through a username, protection against repeated username guessing attempts, and reserving high-profile usernames associated with celebrities, government agencies, and celebrities.
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