WhatsApp banned 71 lakh accounts for violating policies in India

Meta-owned WhatsApp is back at the blocking spree. It banned over 71 lakh accounts in November 2023 in India for violating policies. These accounts were banned in compliance with the new IT Rules 2021, as per Meta. Also Read: WhatsApp’s New iPhone Update Brings A Liquid Glass Design, But Also A Strange Mute Bug

Meta banned over 71 lakh bad accounts in November in India

As per the data shared, the chat app had over 71 lakh accounts in November violating policies, thus they were banned by Meta. To be precise, Meta banned 71,96,000 accounts between November 1 and November 30. Interestingly, about 19,54,000 accounts were banned proactively by the firm even before users reported them. Also Read: Now Apply For Delhi Govt Documents In WhatsApp Chat, No Office Visit Needed

WhatsApp has over 500 million users in India and it received new 8,841 compliant reports in November 2023. Out of these reports, the records actioned were six. Also Read: WhatsApp For iOS Gets A Fresh Liquid Glass Makeover Inspired By iOS 26

These accounts actioned are nothing but the reports where WhatsApp took remedial action by banning them or by restoring previously banned accounts.

“This 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,” according to the company.

The Indian government recently launched the Grievance Appellate Commitee (GAC), which mainly looks into concerns regarding consent alongside other issues. This new panel will look into appeals by users against decisions of social media platforms. This will give users an upper hand over the firm, whilst helping them to resolve their issues.

WhatsApp in its statement affirmed its privacy and security features while reporting the aforesaid figures. “We are an industry leader among end-to-end encrypted messaging services in preventing and combating abuse. In addition to our safety features and controls, we employ a team of engineers, data scientists, analysts, researchers, and experts in law enforcement, online safety, and technology developments to oversee these efforts,” stated WhatsApp.

Apart from this, WhatsApp has a few tools that allow users to stay safe on the platform. This includes the ability to report problematic behavior while in a chat and block unwanted contacts, which you haven’t saved earlier. Both of these features can come in handy when you feel the person in front might not be safe to talk to.

— Written with inputs from IANS