WhatsApp Blocked 84.5 Lakh+ Indian Accounts In August 2024

Messaging platform WhatsApp banned over 84.58 Lakh Indian accounts in August 2024, according to its monthly transparency report. 

The Meta-owned messaging platform cited violations of its terms of service, grievances from local users and orders received from the grievance appellate committee (GAC) as the reasons behind the crackdown. 

Of the total, 16.61 Lakh accounts were proactively removed by leveraging machine learning tools that detect suspicious behaviour, such as bulk messaging or other irregular activity patterns.

The report was published in compliance with India’s Information Technology (IT) Rules, 2021, which require platforms to disclose details on their content moderation efforts. 

As per the report, WhatsApp received 10,707 user complaints in August 2024, and action was taken on 93 cases. The complaints included ban appeals, account support requests, and grievances related to safety concerns.

This comes close on the heels of the reports that the Competition Commission of India (CCI) was mulling issuing an order against WhatsApp for allegedly breaching the country’s antitrust laws. The case pertained to the messaging app’s controversial 2021 privacy policy update that allowed the Meta-owned platform to share certain user data with Meta.

As per the revisions in the Competition Act in 2023, the regulatory watchdog is allowed to levy penalties of up to 10% of the average turnover for the preceding three financial years on guilty enterprises.

However, this is not the first time that the company has landed in choppy waters. In April this year, WhatsApp told the Delhi High Court (HC) that it would cease its India operations if the platform was forced to break its message encryption.

This also comes at a time when WhatsApp and its parent Meta have aggressively scaled up their offerings. Recently, WhatsApp started rolling out the Meta Verified badge feature for all eligible small businesses in India, which allows them to send personalised messages to customers. Prior to that, Meta also launched verified service for brands on Facebook and Instagram.

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