WhatsApp Suspends Over 9.8 Million Accounts In India In June, Cites Harmful Activity
WhatsApp banned more than 98 lakh accounts in India during June, as part of its efforts to curb abuse and harmful activity on the platform, according to WhatsApp's latest India Monthly Report.
Of these, nearly 19.79 lakh accounts were banned proactively, before any user complaints were received, the report stated.
In addition to banning accounts, WhatsApp also acted on grievances received from users in India.
During the month, the platform received 23,596 complaints through its grievance mechanisms, out of which action was taken against 1,001 accounts.
These actions included banning accounts or restoring previously banned accounts after reviewing complaints.
Most complaints were related to ban appeals, with 16,069 such cases reported, leading to action on 756 accounts.
Other categories included account support, product support, and safety-related issues, as per the report.
WhatsApp said its abuse detection works at three stages -- during account registration, while messaging, and in response to negative feedback such as user reports and blocks.
The company added that prevention is its primary focus, as stopping harmful activity before it happens is more effective than detecting it afterward.
The platform emphasised its commitment to user safety, saying it uses end-to-end encryption, safety tools, and dedicated teams to fight abuse, misinformation, and security threats.
It also works with experts to promote cybersecurity and protect election integrity, the messaging platform said in the report.
Meanwhile, last month, the messaging platform has introduced two new tools - 'Status Ads' and 'Promoted Channels'.
According to WABetaInfo, these features were available to select beta users on Android.
Status Ads work like Instagram Story ads. Now, business accounts can post paid content that will show up in people's Status updates.
These ads will appear between status updates from friends and family, with a clear "sponsored" label so people can easily spot them as ads.
(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Time of India
an hour ago
- Time of India
Instagram, Facebook Messenger down globally, Meta platforms' users report outages
Meta's popular social media platforms Instagram and Facebook Messenger experienced widespread outages on Monday evening, leaving millions of users unable to send messages, access DMs, or use key communication features. The disruption began around 6:15 PM (GMT) and quickly spread globally, prompting a flood of complaints and memes across other platforms like X (formerly Twitter) and TikTok. According to data from outage tracker Downdetector, both Instagram and Messenger saw a sharp spike in reported issues within minutes. Over 120,000 users in the U.S., U.K., India, and parts of Europe reported being affected, with common complaints including messages not sending, inability to refresh chats, and stories not loading on Instagram. Productivity Tool Zero to Hero in Microsoft Excel: Complete Excel guide By Metla Sudha Sekhar View Program Finance Introduction to Technical Analysis & Candlestick Theory By Dinesh Nagpal View Program Finance Financial Literacy i e Lets Crack the Billionaire Code By CA Rahul Gupta View Program Digital Marketing Digital Marketing Masterclass by Neil Patel By Neil Patel View Program Finance Technical Analysis Demystified- A Complete Guide to Trading By Kunal Patel View Program Productivity Tool Excel Essentials to Expert: Your Complete Guide By Study at home View Program Artificial Intelligence AI For Business Professionals Batch 2 By Ansh Mehra View Program This marks the second significant service interruption for Meta in 2025. A smaller-scale outage in March affected Facebook's login systems and disrupted Reels for several hours. Monday's outage, however, appears to have had a broader impact, especially among younger users who rely heavily on Instagram DMs for real-time communication. by Taboola by Taboola Sponsored Links Sponsored Links Promoted Links Promoted Links You May Like The Most Shocking Crimes Committed by Celebrities Undo As messaging failed to function properly, many users turned to 'X' to share their frustration and humor. Hashtags such as #InstagramDown, #MessengerDown, and #MetaFail trended within the hour. Some users speculated about a potential cyberattack, though no evidence has yet emerged to support that claim. For influencers, marketers, and businesses that rely on Instagram and Messenger for customer engagement, the outage caused brief but noticeable disruptions. Some e-commerce brands reported a dip in click-through rates and stalled customer queries. Live Events Meta's stock dipped slightly in after-hours trading but rebounded once signs emerged that systems were returning to normal. By 8:45 PM GMT, many users reported that Messenger was back online, with Instagram DMs slowly being restored. Still, the outage serves as another reminder of how dependent billions of users are on a small number of tech platforms for communication. Critics argue that more resilience and transparency are needed when these systems fail. Meta has not yet published a full postmortem on the issue but is expected to do so in the coming days. For now, users can once again slide into DMs—but with a bit more caution and perhaps a backup chat app at the ready. FAQs Q1. What are Meta platforms ? A1. Meta platforms are Instagram, Facebook and WhatsApp. Q2. What happened to Meta platforms? A2. This has been the second significant service interruption for Meta in 2025.
Time of India
an hour ago
- Time of India
Grok Imagine goes viral; over 20 million images generated in 24 hours
Academy Empower your mind, elevate your skills The new text-to-video generation application Grok Imagine , led by artificial intelligence (AI) company xAI , has witnessed a surge, with over 20 million images generated as of Tuesday, chief executive Elon Musk posted on X (formerly Twitter).A day before, over 14 million images were on Tuesday, Musk announced that the Grok Imagine app is available to all X Premium users . Additionally, the app is accessible for both iOS and Android a series of tweets, Musk reposted creatives by users experimenting with the app, which is currently in an early beta phase. From recreating historical events to making posters and even animated memes, Imagine has taken over the is the latest animated, voice-enabled AI companion introduced by xAI's Grok platform . He joins earlier companions like Ani, a goth anime-style avatar, and Rudy, the sarcastic red panda, as part of Grok's character-driven user took to X, describing how Grok Imagine brought the fondest memories to have praised the production quality and Grok's ability to go extravagant when it comes to to Musk, users can update their X app and request access to the waitlist by navigating to the 'Grok' section in settings and selecting 'Imagine.'Grok Imagine allows users to generate videos of up to six minutes duration and still images from text prompts. In addition, it can animate static images into moving visuals with synchronised sound, offering creators a more seamless workflow without needing external tools or feature is available both via the standalone Grok app and within the main X platform. According to a post by the official Grok handle, full public rollout is expected in phases beginning October 2025.
Time of India
2 hours ago
- Time of India
ET MSME Awards 2025: How KASSIA built Karnataka's small industry ecosystem
Live Events Each week, the ET MSME Awards will feature an industry association that has played a critical role in India's growth story. This week, we celebrate KASSIA Are you a tech enabler from Karnataka? Nominate yourself for the ET MSME Awards 2025 In 1949, when India was still finding its industrial footing, freedom fighter RS Aradhya gathered 15 entrepreneurs in Bangalore (now Bengaluru) with an audacious dream: to create a thriving ecosystem for small-scale industries in a country where enterprise was still a foreign concept. That modest beginning has evolved into the Karnataka Small Scale Industries Association (KASSIA), now one of India's most influential MSME advocacy than 75 years later, KASSIA's fingerprints are all over Karnataka's industrial transformation. The state that houses India's Silicon Valley didn't just stumble into becoming an economic powerhouse. It was built methodically, brick by brick, by organisations like KASSIA that understood the power of micro, small, and medium enterprises long before they became makes KASSIA's story remarkable isn't just its longevity, but its prescience. Founded in 1949 with the objective to promote small enterprises at a time when enterprise was a rare phenomenon, the organisation was essentially betting on a future that most couldn't envision. While the country was focused on heavy industry and public sector dominance, KASSIA was quietly nurturing the entrepreneurial spirit that would eventually become India's economic association's early focus was laser-sharp: motivating first-generation entrepreneurs to set up manufacturing industries to function as ancillaries and component suppliers to medium and large-scale enterprises. This wasn't just about creating jobs, but about building an entire supply chain ecosystem that would make large industries viable and competitive. Register now for the ET MSME Awards 2025 and nominate yourself for one or more of our 22 advocacy: Building infrastructureToday's KASSIA has evolved far beyond its advocacy roots. The association is now pioneering what could be the next chapter in India's industrial story: it is setting up the 50,000 sq ft KASSIA Centre of Excellence and Innovation in Dobbespet along the Mumbai-Bangalore Industrial Corridor to facilitate MSMEs. The move signals its transition from industry supporter to industry isn't just another next generation business incubator. The centre represents KASSIA's understanding that apart from policy advocacy, modern MSMEs need cutting-edge infrastructure, technology access, and innovation frameworks that can compete globally. Digital transformation : Old dogs, new tricksPerhaps nothing illustrates KASSIA's adaptability better than its embrace of digital transformation. The association has developed mobile-friendly B2B portals for Android and iOS, recognising that today's entrepreneurs are as likely to conduct business on smartphones as in digital pivot isn't merely about keeping up with technology. It's about understanding that the small industries of tomorrow will be born digital. By providing these platforms, KASSIA is ensuring that its member base isn't just surviving the digital revolution, but thriving in influence extends well beyond Karnataka's borders. The association has hosted major conventions focused on themes such as innovation, technology upgradation, and banking access, bringing together some of the brightest minds in the MSME sector. More than networking events, these are idea laboratories where the future of small industry gets the leadership of industry veterans like BR Ganesh Rao, these conventions have become must-attend events for anyone serious about the MSME impact can't be measured just in the number of members or events. The organisation helped create the very concept of small-scale manufacturing in India, turning what was once a cottage industry landscape into a sophisticated ecosystem of precision manufacturers, component suppliers, and technology when Karnataka is mentioned alongside Silicon Valley or when Indian MSMEs compete successfully in global markets, there's a direct lineage back to that room in 1949, where 15 entrepreneurs decided that small could be India moves closer to its goal of a trillion-dollar digital economy, KASSIA finds itself once again at the forefront of transformation. The association that once had to convince people small industries mattered now operates in a context where MSMEs are recognised as the backbone of the country's economic question isn't whether KASSIA will remain relevant, but whether it can continue to anticipate the next big shift as successfully as it did in 1949. Given its track record of staying ahead of the curve, from early manufacturing advocacy to digital transformation, betting against KASSIA would be an era where startup ecosystems get all the attention, KASSIA represents something more enduring: the patient, methodical work of building industrial foundations that last generations. That's not just good business — it's nation-building, one small enterprise at a ET MSME Awards 2025 , which has IDBI Bank as banking and lending partner, is open for nominations. Put yourself up for consideration before August 31, 2025.
