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The world’s most popular instant messaging app is WhatsApp, which brings new features for its 4 billion users, recently WhatsApp is preparing to bring a new feature, which will allow users to communicate without sharing their mobile numbers. Before the roll out of this feature, the Central Government has intervened and sought complete information from the company on concerns to user security, identity verification and privacy, let us know the complete details.

Government sent notice to Meta

The central government has sent a notice to Meta, asking the company to provide complete information about the proposed ‘username’ feature of WhatsApp within three days.

The government has also directed Meta not to roll out this feature for general users until the authorities conduct a comprehensive review of its potential impact.

Why is the government reviewing this feature?

The government wants to find out whether the new feature could pose security or privacy risks to users. Officials are investigating how this may affect:

Identity verification of the user

Data Privacy and Security

Protection from online fraud

Overall reliability of the platform

Only after the completion of this review will it be decided whether this feature can be launched in India or whether changes will be required.

What is the username feature of WhatsApp?

WhatsApp is expected to launch a username feature later this year, allowing users to create a unique username for their account.

Once launched, users will be able to:

Connecting with others without sharing mobile numbers.

Enjoy more privacy while chatting.

Using a unique username without revealing your personal phone number.

Meta has also indicated that users may be given the opportunity to reserve their preferred username ahead of the official roll-out, although this option is not currently available.

What are the government’s concerns?

The biggest concern of the government is the possibility of its misuse.

Officials fear that if people can communicate using just their username, fraudsters could:

Pretending to be someone else (impersonation).

Creating a fake identity.

Misleading users through scam or fraudulent activities.

To address these concerns, the government has asked Meta to:

What security measures will prevent ‘impersonation’ (pretending to be someone else)?

How will the user’s identity be verified?

What safeguards are in place to detect and prevent misuse?

Final decision after technical review

Government officials are currently evaluating all technical, security and privacy- aspects of this feature. The review will focus on ensuring that the new system properly protects users and that online security is not compromised.