WhatsApp has banned almost 2 million accounts in India in the month of January 2022. The information comes from its monthly report under Rule 4(1)(d) of the Information Technology (Intermediary Guidelines and Digital Media Ethics Code) Rules, 2021. The report encapsulates the period between January 1, 2022 to January 31, 2022. According to the report, the Meta-owned company has banned 1,858,000 Indian accounts in the one month period. According to the app, the bans were implemented for violating laws in India and the terms of service of WhatsApp.
WhatsApp bans almost 2 million Indian accounts in January
This is not the first time WhatsApp has banned a large number of accounts. Earlier, the Meta-owned company banned 3 million accounts in 46 days between June 16 to July 31, 2021. And again in November 2021, it banned 1.7 million accounts in India due to malicious behavior of certain users. With rising incidents of fake news in social media, inciting violence through forwarded messages as well as spreading hateful messages towards a group or community, WhatsApp has increased its scrutiny on the platform and has been vigilantly punishing any malicious behavior.
User reports can also lead to a ban
A significant portion of these WhatsApp bans in January also come from user reports. This is when a user reports another for harassment, threats, and inappropriate behavior including but not limited to bullying, casteist or racist comments, unwanted sexual advances and others. A user on the platform has an option to long press a message and then click the three dot menu button on top right to report a particular message and the user.
Once WhatsApp receives a complaint, it receives the particular message and five previous messages to help them form a content. The instant messaging platform also receives information regarding the reported group or individual as well as the time of sending and type of the message (image, text, video etc). If the messages break any local law or the terms and conditions of WhatsApp, it bans the user.
How to contact WhatsApp if you were unjustly banned
However, sometimes a mistake can be made and WhatsApp might ban an innocent user. For instances like these, the instant messaging app has provided a process for the banned individual to put up a grievance. Users can send an email to [email protected] in case they feel they were unjustly banned from the platform. The email needs to have an electronic signature and the contact number in international format. If the user turns out to be innocent, the account will be restored.
