WhatsApp’s long-awaited username feature has come under early regulatory pressure after the Indian government asked Meta to delay its rollout over concerns that it could create new opportunities for online fraud, phishing and impersonation scams.
The move comes just days after WhatsApp announced that users around the world could begin reserving usernames ahead of a gradual global rollout later this year.
However, WhatsApp has clarified that the feature is not yet live.
“We have announced the option for people to reserve their preferred username on WhatsApp. The ability to use a username is not yet live and will roll out slowly later this year,” a company spokesperson said on July 1.
Read also: WhatsApp introduces username feature to enable more users’ privacy
