WhatsApp responds to Indian government's order to pause the planned rollout of its username feature

Earlier this week, Meta-ownedWhatsApp introduced the username feature, allowing its users to communicate with each other without sharing their phone numbers. The feature will roll out later this year, but WhatsApp is already allowing users to reserve their usernames. The username feature raised security, privacy, and impersonation concerns among many, including the Indian government, which asked WhatsApp to pause the planned rollout of the feature under the IT Act, 2000, the IT Rules, 2021, and other applicable laws. You can see the images below to read the letter sent by the Indian government to WhatsApp. Indian government's letter to WhatsApp regarding the username feature |Source

In response, WhatsApp said that users still need a phone number to use WhatsApp and that it has built multiple layers of defense against scams into its username system. Besides, to protect against impersonation, WhatsApp has reserved high-profile names (public figures, government entities, celebrities, verified Meta accounts) so they can be claimed only by their legitimate owners. WhatsApp's username feature lets you communicate without sharing phone number

Here's the full statement we received from WhatsApp regarding this matter: Reserving your WhatsApp username is optional, and you can do so by navigating to WhatsApp'sSettings>Account>Usernamemenu. If you don't see the option to reserve your username, try again after updating to the latest version of WhatsApp.