New Delhi, July 10: The Centre has received WhatsApp‘s response to its notice over the proposed ‘username‘ feature and is examining the submission, sources said on Friday, as the government continues to assess concerns over potential misuse of the feature.
The IT Ministry had issued a notice to the Meta-owned messaging platform last week, expressing apprehensions that the feature could increase online fraud, phishing, impersonation and digital arrest scams. The government also directed WhatsApp not to roll out the feature in India until consultations are completed to its satisfaction.
WhatsApp submitted its reply on Thursday night after seeking additional time and had earlier assured the government that the feature would not be launched in India until discussions with authorities conclude.
The proposed feature would allow users to communicate through usernames instead of sharing their mobile numbers.
There has been no official statement from WhatsApp on the contents of its response.
Earlier on Thursday, IT Secretary S. Krishnan said WhatsApp’s reply was awaited and added that responses from Telegram and Signal, which were also served notices over their username features, were yet to be received as they still had time to respond.
Following the notice, a Meta delegation met IT Ministry officials last Friday. The government had sought an explanation from the company on why action should not be initiated under the Information Technology Act and relevant rules, reminding WhatsApp of its due diligence obligations as a significant social media intermediary.
WhatsApp has maintained that the username feature is not yet live and will be introduced gradually later this year. The company said phone numbers will remain mandatory for creating WhatsApp accounts and that multiple safeguards have been built into the feature to prevent impersonation and scams.
According to the company, high-profile usernames linked to public figures, government entities, celebrities and verified Meta accounts will be reserved for legitimate owners. It also plans to limit unsolicited messages from unknown users, prevent repeated attempts to guess usernames, detect suspicious activity, and notify users whether a first-time sender is a new account, a contact, a mutual group member or is messaging from another country.
The IT Ministry has also issued similar notices to Telegram and Signal, seeking details on measures adopted to address fraud and impersonation risks associated with their existing username features. Meanwhile, Meta and Telegram have faced separate regulatory scrutiny over issues related to child safety and online piracy. (Agencies)
