Concerns over digital fraud are rising even as WhatsApp steps up enforcement in India, banning nearly a crore accounts every month. Government officials report that, through October, WhatsApp blocked an average of 9.8 million accounts per month in India, its largest market, for violating platform rules. By November, around 2.9 million WhatsApp profiles and groups were deactivated following government orders, according to the Department of Telecommunications. While WhatsApp releases monthly compliance reports, it does not disclose the mobile numbers of banned accounts due to end-to-end encryption and legal restrictions.
WhatsApp Ban Details Raise Concerns Over Digital Fraud
The issue: Authorities say the lack of detailed information on banned WhatsApp numbers is making it hard to fight spam, cyber fraud, and impersonation. Often, numbers blocked on WhatsApp quickly reappear on other platforms like Telegram. Government estimates indicate that around 95% of digital fraud and impersonation cases happen on WhatsApp.
Why it matters: Messaging apps can work without an active SIM once an account is created, making it difficult to trace users. Officials note that access to banned numbers, not message content or personal data, would help verify SIM issuance and KYC compliance across telecom networks.
Next steps: The government is discussing with WhatsApp and other platforms to find a balance between user convenience and security and to determine if more detailed disclosures are needed as digital fraud continues to rise.
WhatsApp Complaints vs. Action Taken
In a single month, WhatsApp received 23,596 complaints from Indian users via official channels like email and post. However, only 1,001 complaints—less than 5%—resulted in any action. Most complaints, over 16,000, were appeals against account bans, but only 756 accounts saw any action. Additionally, 350 reports related to safety issues, such as abuse or harmful behaviour, received no response, with users being redirected to report within the app, a process that often lacks follow-up and accountability.
Enforcement and Monitoring
WhatsApp states that its abuse detection systems monitor accounts at multiple stages—during registration, message sending, and when receiving negative feedback. Despite banning nearly 1 crore accounts in a month, minimal information is shared about the nature of violations or user recourse, raising concerns about arbitrary enforcement and the absence of external audits.
Staying Safe on WhatsApp
WhatsApp is primarily a private messaging platform used to communicate with friends, family, businesses, or professionals like doctors. To protect users’ privacy, all messages are end-to-end encrypted, ensuring that only the sender and recipient can view their contents.
