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India has thrown a major roadblock in front of WhatsApp’s highly anticipated new feature. The Indian government has officially warned Meta against rolling out its username feature in the country, citing severe concerns over a potential surge in cybercrime.
According to a Press Trust of India report, authorities have given Meta a strict three-day deadline to explain how the feature works and have ordered a complete halt on its launch until official consultations are wrapped up, News.Az reports, citing Anadolu Agency.
The government’s main worry? A massive spike in digital fraud. Officials warn that allowing users to connect via unique usernames instead of verified phone numbers could trigger a wave of phishing, impersonation attacks, and the increasingly common “digital arrest” scams. The Ministry has even asked Meta to justify why it shouldn’t face action under India’s strict Information Technology Act for introducing a feature that could easily facilitate cybercrime.
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Currently, WhatsApp is testing the feature to let its 3 billion global users reserve a unique username so they can chat without sharing personal phone numbers. While Meta maintains that it is building robust anti-impersonation tools into the update, India—WhatsApp’s largest market—isn’t taking any chances until it gets some concrete answers.
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