Over 2.2 Million Indian Accounts Banned On WhatsApp In September: Report

Popular messaging platform WhatsApp revealed that over 2.2 million Indian accounts are banned on the application. In a compliance report published recently, 2,209,000 accounts with the number '+91' are banned and around 560 grievances reports have been received in September alone. The aim behind this is to combat abuse on the platform.

'Want To Keep Our Users Safe On The Platform'

WhatsApp released its compliance report for the month of September, in accordance with the newly-drafted IT Rules in May this year. This is being done in order to look into the complaints that were received on the application. Hindustan Times quoted the application's spokesperson,"The user-safety report contains details of the user complaints received and the corresponding action taken by WhatsApp as well as WhatsApp's own preventive actions to combat abuse on our platform."

The 560 grievances report received ranged from account support to ban appeal, product support and safety. In September, around 51 accounts were actioned on the basis of this, stating that a remedial action was taken on it. This means that either the said account was banned or it was restored back on the platform after the complaint. "WhatsApp is an industry leader in preventing abuse, among end-to-end encrypted messaging services. Over the years, we have consistently invested in Artificial Intelligence and other state of the art technology, data scientists and experts, and in processes, in order to keep our users safe on our platform," the spokesperson added.

'Unauthorised Use Of Bulk Messaging'

In August 2021, WhatsApp again banned over 2 million Indian accounts on its platform. It stated that 95% of the bans are due to the unauthorised use of automated or bulk messaging, also known as 'Spam.' Each month, the Facebook-owned platforms puts a ban on around 8 million accounts in order to check on abuse and reduce spamming at any cost.

WhatsApp has also made claims about its end-to-end encrypted messaging policy to facilitate privacy on the otherwise public platform. However, a report published in September by ProPublica states that more than 1000 contract workers stationed in WhatsApp offices around the United States actually sift through the messages using a special software in order to 'identify' the possible abusive content being shared on the platform.

Also Read: WhatsApp's Promise Of End-To-End Encryption A Lie?