WhatsApp has come under controversy over a new feature. The company recently introduced a username feature, which has raised concerns among the government and has issued a notice to Meta.

WhatsApp New Feature: Some new features have been added to WhatsApp, owned by Meta, which has raised new concerns. The company recently rolled out a new feature that allows you to contact someone without a phone number. For this, the company has requested users to choose a username.

Even before its launch, this feature came under scrutiny from the Indian government. The government acknowledged that this new feature could pose a security risk. Now, the central government has issued a notice to Meta. The government has asked Meta to provide detailed information about the username feature within three days.

Username feature will not be launched!

The central government stated in its notice that the username feature should not be launched until discussions on this matter are complete. According to sources, the government's notice stated that it should first provide complete information regarding the meta username feature and only then roll it out in India.

It's worth noting that WhatsApp previously announced that starting later this year, users will be able to chat and use the calling feature without a mobile number. This means you won't need to exchange numbers to communicate on WhatsApp; it will be possible simply by sharing a username. Experts believe this new WhatsApp feature could prove to be a security risk.

What did the government ask in the notice?

In a notice issued to Meta, the government questioned why action should not be taken under the IT Act and regulations regarding a WhatsApp feature that could lead to an increase in cybercrime. Furthermore, the government argued that WhatsApp's username feature could lead to an increase in online fraud, phishing, digital arrest scams, and impersonation attacks.

On June 29, WhatsApp provided information about the username feature.

It's worth noting that WhatsApp shared information about the username feature on X on June 29th. In the X post, WhatsApp wrote, "Your phone number is your personal information, and sometimes you want to connect with others without sharing your number. That's why we're bringing the username feature to WhatsApp."

The company stated that users can reserve their usernames starting this week, which will be used as part of a feature launching later this year. In this post, WhatsApp then explained how to get a username.

WhatsApp's response to the government's notice

Responding to the government's notice on the username issue, a WhatsApp spokesperson said, "We have announced the option for people to reserve their preferred username on WhatsApp. The username feature hasn't launched yet and will be rolled out gradually later this year. To prevent impersonation, we have reserved verified Meta accounts for the most famous people, so that only their rightful owners can claim them; names that are similar to famous names have also been reserved."

A company spokesperson said that users will still need a phone number to use WhatsApp, and we've built in multiple layers of protection to prevent username scams: other users must know your valid username to message you, we'll limit the number of new contacts an account can make, we'll block repeated attempts to guess someone's username, and we'll have systems in place to detect and prevent common impersonation and abuse patterns.

Image Credit: AI