WhatsApp told to focus on rumours
New Delhi, July 25: IT ministry is keen to see WhatsApp prioritise curbing of fake news on its platform, against the backdrop of lynching incidents claiming many lives, over its plans to launch payments service, as per a senior government official.
The official told PTI that WhatsApp’s payment service matter had figured in the meeting on monday between IT secretary Ajay Prakash Sawhney and WhatsApp executives, including COO Matthew Idema.
The meeting saw the executives outlining the steps initiated by the Facebook- owned company recently to combat circulation of fake messages which incited lynching incidents in several parts of the country.
The ministry is of the view that WhatApp needs to resolve on priority basis the overhanging issue of misinformation and take more steps to control the rampant abuse of its platform for circulation of fake messages.
WhatsApp has been told that the fake news issue is far more important than other plans in the current circumstances, said the official, who was privy to the recent discussions.
WhatsApp didn’t respond to an emailed query.
The official noted that there are outstanding concerns over Whatsapp’s proposed payment service plan, including how and where will the data of users be stored in the backdrop of RBI’s instructions, mandating that data be stored in India.
The government wants greater clarity on how the storage issue is being handled by WhatsApp and these matters are under discussion, the official said, adding that detailed examination is required also given that WhatsApp has a large user base in India.
India is the largest market for WhatsApp with the country accounting for over 200 million of its total 1.3 billion user base.
Despite the ongoing concerns, the IT ministry remains keen on new technology and innovation coming in, the official said.
Concerns over Whatsapp’s proposed payment service plan, including how and where will the data be stored in the backdrop of Reserve Bank of India’s instructions remains, the official noted.