WhatsApp Bans 18.58 Lakh Indian Accounts in January Over Complaints Received From Users, Harmful Behaviour

The majority of the accounts were banned based on harmful behaviour detected via WhatsApp’s tools and resources.

Advertisement
By Press Trust of India | Updated: 2 March 2022 14:49 IST
Highlights
  • WhatsApp received grievances against 495 Indian accounts
  • WhatsApp uses tools and resources to detect harmful behaviour
  • WhatsApp identifies Indian accounts via the ISD code (+91) prefix

The majority of the 18.58 lakh accounts were banned based on harmful behaviour

Mobile messaging platform WhatsApp banned 18.58 lakh Indian accounts in January on the basis of complaints received from users through its grievances division and the company's own mechanism to prevent and detect law violators, according to a monthly report published on Tuesday.

WhatsApp received grievances against 495 Indian accounts which appealed to ban 285 accounts, out of which 24 were banned.

Advertisement

The majority of the 18.58 lakh accounts were banned based on harmful behaviour detected through tools and resources deployed by the company in its app.

"The data shared (banning of 18.58 lakh accounts)...highlights the number of Indian accounts banned by WhatsApp between 1 January, 2022 - 31 January, 2022 using the aforementioned abuse detection approach, which also includes action taken in furtherance to negative feedback received from users via our 'Report' feature," said WhatsApp's India Monthly Report under the Information Technology (Intermediary Guidelines and Digital Media Ethics Code) Rules (or IT Rules), 2022.

The company identifies Indian accounts via ISD code of +91 prefixed before the 10-digit mobile number.


Gaana CEO and Spotify's India chief join us on Orbital, the Gadgets 360 podcast, to discuss India's unique music streaming landscape. Orbital is available on Spotify, Gaana, JioSaavn, Google Podcasts, Apple Podcasts, Amazon Music and wherever you get your podcasts.
Affiliate links may be automatically generated - see our ethics statement for details.
 

Get your daily dose of tech news, reviews, and insights, in under 80 characters on Gadgets 360 Turbo. Connect with fellow tech lovers on our Forum. Follow us on X, Facebook, WhatsApp, Threads and Google News for instant updates. Catch all the action on our YouTube channel.

Further reading: WhatsApp, India, WhatsApp India, IT Rules, Meta
Advertisement

Related Stories

Popular Mobile Brands
  1. Infinix Note Edge JBL Edition First Impressions
  2. Realme C01 Price, Specifications Revealed via Retailer Listing
  3. Redmi K100 Confirmed to Get a 50-Megapixel Rear Camera
  4. Oppo Find X10 Pro Max Will Launch in India With This Flagship MediaTek SoC
  5. Poco X8s With a 6,330mAh Battery Debuts at This Price
  6. Infinix GT 50 Pro Gaming Bundle Revealed Ahead of October 27 India Launch
  1. GTA 6 Is Estimated to Have Generated $630 Million From Pre-Orders Already
  2. Infinix GT 50 Pro Gaming Bundle Revealed Ahead of October 27 India Launch
  3. Malaysia Rolls Out Tokenised Bond Platform for Around-the-Clock Settlement
  4. SBI Reports Suspected Data Exposure Affecting 3,897 Customer Records
  5. eMudhra Takes Remedial Action After Security Researcher Flags Weak Intermediate CA Keys
  6. Upbit Operator Dunamu Partners With MoonPay to Advance Stablecoin Payment Solutions
  7. Perplexity Computer for Mac Adds Local AI Mode for Pro, Max Subscribers
  8. Oppo Reno 17 Pro Camera, Display and Battery Specifications Surface Online Ahead of Expected Launch
  9. Motorola Razr Flex 27 Chipset and Other Specifications Revealed via Geekbench Listing Ahead of Launch
  10. Qubic Brings Blockchain Back Online After $1.4 Million Attack, Sets Recovery Claim Window
Download Our Apps
Available in Hindi
© Copyright Red Pixels Ventures Limited 2026. All rights reserved.