The Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (Meity) has asked Meta to defer the rollout of WhatsApp’s new username feature until consultations are completed, amid concerns over potential misuse, including impersonation, fraud and online scams. It has also directed the company to provide a detailed explanation on the feature within three days.
According to government sources, a meeting has been scheduled for Thursday between Meity, the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA), and messaging platforms offering similar features to discuss the concerns around usernames. “The MHA first raised concerns about cyber fraud, which it conveyed to Meity. A meeting has been convened and officials from the MHA, Meity and executives from peer-to-peer messaging platforms will discuss the concerns around usernames,” said a senior government official.
Another senior official said that the examination would focus on whether the feature could potentially be exploited by scammers. The official added that concerns around usernames not being available to original or genuine users were also being brought to WhatsApp’s notice and would be examined.
The move comes after Meta announced that WhatsApp users would soon be able to reserve usernames, which would allow them to connect with others without sharing their phone numbers.
A Meta spokesperson said the ability to use a username is not yet live and would roll out gradually later this year.
“We’ve announced the option for people to reserve their preferred username on WhatsApp,” the Meta spokesperson said.
The company said it had built multiple safeguards to prevent impersonation and scams. To protect against impersonation, Meta said, it had held the highest-profile names -- think public figures, government entities, celebrities, and verified Meta accounts -- so they can only ever be claimed by their legitimate owners; lookalike derivatives of known names are held as well.
It said users would still require a phone number to use WhatsApp and that multiple layers of defence had been built into usernames to prevent abuse. The company said that once the feature becomes available, users receiving a first-time message through a username would be shown details such as whether the sender is a new account, whether they are an existing contact, if they share common groups, and whether they are based in another country, helping users decide whether to respond.
Meta did not separately comment on the government’s notice. However, a company source confirmed that a notice had been received from Meity.
According to government sources, Meity’s concerns are focused on whether the feature could potentially be exploited by scammers.
Meanwhile, several WhatsApp users attempting to reserve their preferred usernames have faced a separate issue -- being unable to secure names they might have already registered with WhatsApp.
 "Govt asks WhatsApp not to roll out username feature over fraud risks")
