The Centre issued a notice to WhatsApp India's Chief Compliance Officer, demanding an explanation on the username feature within three days.
The government directed Meta to halt the rollout of the feature until consultations are completed to its satisfaction.
Authorities warned that the feature could materially increase online fraud, phishing, digital arrest scams, and impersonation attacks.
The Centre on Wednesday issued a notice to the Chief Compliance Officer of WhatsApp India Operations, demanding a detailed explanation of the new username feature, supported by relevant documents, within three days.
The government also asked Meta to explain why action should not be initiated under the IT Act and rules over the feature that may increase cybercrimes, reminding the company that WhatsApp is bound by due diligence obligations as a significant social media intermediary, PTI reported.
The government directed Meta to halt the rollout of the feature until consultations are completed "to the satisfaction of the Government", PTI reported.
The notice stated: "It is felt that the feature may materially increase the incidence of online fraud, phishing, digital arrest scams and impersonation attacks, by enabling bad actors to solicit and message victims."
Government Cites IT Act
The notice cited Section 79 of the Information Technology Act regarding intermediary due diligence and Section 79(3)(a) concerning liability for aiding, abetting or inducing unlawful acts.
The communication referenced Rules 3 and 4 of the IT Rules, 2021. These rules govern intermediary responsibilities and the lawful identification of the first originator of messages.
Authorities invoked Sections 66C and 66D of the IT Act, which deal with identity theft and cheating by impersonation using computer resources. Government sources indicated that officials will examine whether existing laws can restrict the rollout if the feature poses risks to public safety or national security.
WhatsApp Defends Privacy Feature
WhatsApp plans to introduce the username feature later this year to allow communication without sharing phone numbers, though the company noted that users will still require a phone number to use the app. The Meta-owned messaging platform aims to enhance privacy through this update and had already begun allowing users to reserve usernames.
A WhatsApp spokesperson said: "To protect against impersonation, we’ve held the highest-profile names—think public figures, government entities, celebrities, verified Meta accounts—so they can only ever be claimed by their legitimate owners and lookalike derivatives of known names are held as well."
The company outlined multiple safeguards. These include limiting how many new people an account can contact, blocking repeated attempts to guess username keys and detecting common abuse patterns.
WhatsApp will also display whether a first-time sender is a new account, a contact, a mutual group member or based in a different country before a user responds.
Industry Warns Of Scams
India is the largest market for WhatsApp, with more than 500mn users. Tech leaders have voiced concerns over the upcoming update.
Paytm founder and Chief Executive Vijay Shekhar Sharma warned on X that similar-sounding usernames could become a vector for impersonation and scams.
Jasveer Singh, co-founder and Chief Executive of KnotDating, questioned how the platform would balance user privacy with accountability.
