WhatsApp has taken strong action against online financial frauds and 'digital arrest' threats. As part of the security measures taken by the Ministry of Home Affairs and other government agencies, WhatsApp has banned 9,400 accounts involved in such scams in India since January 2026. These measures are being taken in collaboration with the Reserve Bank of India, the Department of Telecom (DoT) and investigative agencies.

The company has already put in place new security measures to identify fake accounts and warn users. Investigations have found that most of these 'digital arrest' scams targeting Indians are operating from Southeast Asian countries, including Cambodia. They were committing fraud through organized groups using fake names and profiles.

WhatsApp will soon implement the 'SIM binding' system as per the directives of the Department of Telecom to completely stop the scams. This method of permanently linking the app to the actual SIM card on the device, after completing KYC, will be implemented in the next four to six months. In addition, the government has also strictly instructed to quickly block suspicious SIM cards and use artificial intelligence (AI) to detect risky accounts on the web versions.