According to WhatsApp’s monthly compliance report, the messaging service blocked more than 20 lakh accounts in India for the month of August. In addition, the monthly compliance report indicated that WhatsApp received 420 grievance complaints throughout the month of August.
An Indian account may be identified by its phone number (+91) on the account statement. One of the major reasons for the banning of 20,70,000 accounts was the unlawful use of automated or bulk communications, which were sent in large numbers.
During the month of August, WhatsApp received 420 user reports, which included 105 reports for account support, 222 reports for a ban appeal, 34 complaints about other support, 42 reports for product support, and 17 reports for safety. WhatsApp, on the other hand, took corrective action against 41 accounts out of 421 allegations.
When WhatsApp receives user complaints through the grievance channel, the messaging app employs tools and resources to prevent harmful behavior on the network, according to the company’s support website.
“WhatsApp’s user-safety report comprises information on user complaints received and the actions taken by the company in response to such complaints, as well as WhatsApp’s own preventative measures to combat abuse on our platform. At the forefront of our efforts is the prevention of accounts from sending dangerous or undesired communications on a large scale. In order to identify accounts that send a large or unusual number of messages, we have developed sophisticated detection tools”. In a statement, a WhatsApp spokesman stated that “the vast majority of users who contact us are either attempting to have their accounts reinstated following a ban action taken against them or seeking product or account help.”
WhatsApp has previously announced that it had blocked more than three million accounts in forty-six days, an impressive milestone. In order to prevent online abuse and to keep users secure on the site, the accounts were suspended between June 16 and July 31, 2018. Following the receipt of reports and complaints via the grievance channels, WhatsApp took action against breaching accounts and terminated the accounts in question.
WhatsApp keeps track of accounts that send out a large number of messages at an unusually fast rate, and it bans millions of accounts that seek to engage in this type of abuse in India and throughout the world. In India, accounts that participate in automated or mass texting are subject to account suspension or termination.
“We identify misuse at three phases of an account’s lifecycle: during registration, during messaging, and in reaction to negative feedback, which we get in the form of user reports and bans. A team of analysts augments these systems in order to assess edge circumstances and help us enhance our efficacy over time,” according to a WhatsApp report published in June.
