The government issued a notice to Meta regarding the rollout of the username feature on WhatsApp in India. According to the sources, the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology has directed Meta to furnish a detailed explanation on the usernames feature within three days.
The Sources said that the Ministry has taken note of a public announcement by WhatsApp that it has commenced a phased global rollout, including in India, of its usernames feature. It said that once the feature is enabled, the recipient’s phone number will no longer be visible to a first-time contact and that an optional username key may be set as an additional control.
Sources said there are concerns that the feature may increase incidence of online frauds, phishing, digital arrest scams and impersonation attacks. Concerns have also been raised that the feature may facilitate impersonation and identity spoofing.
The sources further said that the Ministry has directed Meta to furnish a detailed explanation on this feature within three days and not roll out the feature until consultation on the matter is over.
