Whatsapp

WhatsApp banned more than two million Indian accounts and received 420 grievance reports in August, the Facebook-owned company has said in its compliance report. WhatsApp said in its report released on Tuesday that 20,70,000 Indian accounts were banned during the said period. WhatsApp also said it received 420 user reports spanning across account support (105), ban appeal (222), other support (34), product support (42) and safety (17) during August and that 41 accounts were "actioned" or took remedial action during this period. According to the messaging platform, taking action means it has either banned an account or restored a previously banned account as a result of the complaint.More than three million Indian accounts were banned by WhatsApp, which also received 594 grievance reports, between June 16 and July 31. The company has said in the past that more than 95 per cent of bans are due to the unauthorised use of automated or bulk messaging or spam. The global average number of accounts that WhatsApp bans to prevent abuse on its platform is around 8 million accounts per month.Also read | Blocked 2 million accounts in India in 1 month, says WhatsApp in new reportIt also said that it may…

Facebook-owned social media-giant, WhatsApp is aggressively pushing new features to its application for retaining user attention. While it is the king of social media, it still needs to stay ahead of the curve when compared to Signal and Telegram. Multiple new features have become a part of the platform in the last few months. Some of the features came directly from other Facebook-owned applications such as Messenger and Instagram. WhatsApp is soon expected to bring multi-device support as well. However, there are still some areas where the application can improve rapidly.Areas Where WhatsApp Can ExcelAreas, where Telegram excels, can be looked at by WhatsApp. First of all, it would have been good if users could send large files up to 1GB at least. According to a Lifewire report, Telegram users can share files up to 2GB in size with other users. This WhatsApp users can’t do even at the verge of 2022 which is a shame.Further, just the additional features that users get in Telegram. Users can even customise the colours inside the application which keeps the experience fresh. It would have been great if it was there in WhatsApp too.At the same time, lesser options, lesser customisation also does…

Facebook-owned messaging platform WhatsApp is set to cease support of its mobile app in November, affecting multiple devices.Not only will the tech giant stop supporting older smart devices, but it has also taken unprecedented steps to block those smartphones from being able to continue to use the service.Affected users will be required to update their smart devices, or buy a new one in order to continue to use WhatsApp.Millions affected worldwideSecurity research firm TitanTech has identified over 40 different devices that will be affected by the decision that will take place on November 1st.Android users running Android 4.1 or below and iPhone users running anything older than iOS 10 will see WhatsApp blocked on their device.Data from 7NEWS.com.au shows that less than 1 per cent of our audience on Android will be affected, running devices such as Samsung’s Galaxy Note 10.1 and Galaxy S2 and S3. A few Huawei devices will also be impacted.In terms of iPhone, around 2 per cent of the 7NEWS online audience will see WhatsApp blocked. If you’re still using an iPhone 4 and older, or haven’t updated iPhone 6S, 6S Plus or SE (2016) you’ll need to get the latest available update.iPhonesFor iPhones, all the…

Whatsapp is introducing new features to enhance user adoption in IndiaFollowing the launch of Whatsapp Pay in 2020, Whatsapp announced that it will introduce the Indian rupee (₹) symbol in the chat box as a visual indicator for making payments easier for users on the platform - a slight change from the current solution that takes two steps to initiate payments.The world's largest chat platform is introducing new features to reduce friction for digital payments and make payments on Whatsapp easier for people - in a step that is likely to encourage more Indians to join the platform.Additionally, the camera app will now be able to recognise all major QR codes for payments - enabling users to transfer money and make offline payments.Whatsapp's addition of the rupee symbol in chat box and feature additions such as QR code access by the camera app are ways to enhance user adoption in India amid the growing competitive space.With the latest updates, Payments on WhatsApp is likely to become more inclusive as users can now send money using two of the most recognisable symbols - by staying within the WhatsApp chat composer.The introduction of better visual indicators on the messenger platform are designed to…

Earlier this month, Star Sports partnered with WhatsApp to custom create a branded content series, The Inner Circle to celebrate the close-knit ‘inner circle’ of people that help sports stars flourish and grow, on and off the field. The series is part of WhatsApp’s current #MessagePrivately campaign and features prominent sports personalities like Shreyas Iyer, Mirabai Chanu, Sania Mirza, PR Sreejesh and Deepa Malik, sharing their stories through freewheeling conversations with host, Abish Mathew. The series will be aired on Star Sports’ channels and Star Sports’ YouTube with amplification on their social media, providing unseen glimpses into the inner circles of these celebrated sports icons. Speaking about the insight behind this unique activation, Avinash Pant, Director Marketing, India says, “WhatsApp believes that all of us need to have an assurance of our own personal space and that privacy is an important component of our lives that helps support growth and brings people closer.  This is no different for public figures and celebrities. When we launched our campaign, of which this activation is a part, we showcased how we provide a private and secure environment to people allowing them to flourish both personally and professionally. When we looked at platforms to…

Meesho has more than doubled its valuation in less than six months, to $4.9 billion, as a growing number of high-profile investors back the Indian social commerce startup that is reporting strong growth despite the pandemic. The Bangalore-headquartered firm said on Thursday it has raised $570 million in its Series F financing round, following a $300 million Series E in April when it was valued at $2.1 billion. Fidelity and B Capital Group co-led the new financing round, bringing the startup’s all-time raise to over $1 billion. Prosus Ventures, SoftBank Vision Fund 2, Facebook, and Good Capital also participated in the new round, which didn’t involve any secondary transaction, the startup’s co-founder and chief executive Vidit Aatrey told TechCrunch in an interview. Meesho — which counts Sequoia Capital India, Y Combinator, and Elevation Capital among its earliest investors — operates a three-sided marketplace that connects suppliers (manufacturers and distributors) and resellers with customers on social media platforms such as WhatsApp, Facebook and Instagram. The resellers buy listed products from the suppliers and make commission on each transaction when they sell to customers. About 80% of resellers on the platform are women, said Aatrey, who co-founded Meesho with Sanjeev Barnwal in…

Representative image | PTI On the occasion of world heart day on Wednesday the Health Department in Gurugram has said it is going to start a WhatsApp video call facility for heart patients to consult cardiologists soon. However, through video calls, if the doctor feels a need for a physical check-up, the patients will have to visit nearby government health centres. This initiative of the health department will benefit people more living in rural areas as after consultation with the doctor, they can visit nearby health centres, primary and community health centres for checkups. Also, If the doctor feels that the patient needs the advice of a cardiologist, then a WhatsApp video call will be made from there. However, this facility will be available only on Friday. "Patients coming to health centres will avail the benefit of this facility. To make a WhatsApp call, the number will be given to the patient from the hospital. Cardiologists will talk to patients in the cath lab running on Public-Private Partnership (PPP) model in the district hospital, Gurugram. Many people have complaints related to heart disease but they are not able to go to the doctor," Yadav said. Once a week an OPD…

Sending a child off to school for the first time brings many parents to tears. Yet what they may have discovered this September is something that made them want to cry even more than watching their offspring disappear into the classroom – the sheer volume of admin from the school.Two weeks into her daughter starting Reception, Amy was inundated with so many texts, emails and messages about projects, trips, charity days, online-learning platforms, fancy dress days, virtual calendars, updates about uniforms and dress codes and so much more that she felt besieged. “The school uses two different apps, emails and text,” she says, “and you never know which one it’s going to be. Some things you get three times, some none at all. Some they send to one parent but not the other. “They also have a habit of sending out forms to be filled out three days after they need them so they then chase you 20 minutes later for not filling it in.”For Laura, who has three children at nursery and primary school, the admin is “intense”. She says: “Between three lots of curriculum evenings, the school’s learning portal, the school emails, login details for all the different…

Eamonn Holmes has been “really encouraging” to the young cooks taking part in a TV show he is presenting, and is still part of a WhatsApp group with them, one of the contestants has revealed. amie Neill, assistant manager of Shu Restaurant in Belfast, is one of seven amateur cooks starring in ‘Farm To Feast: Best Menu Wins’, the first farm-to-fork cookery programme for BBC One Northern Ireland. “I’ve grown up with Eamonn Holmes on the TV, and the first time we all met him on set, he knew all of our names and was so pleasant and is still so supportive,” said the 28-year-old. “Even now, we’re all in a WhatsApp group together and he’s really encouraging!” Co Down native Jamie had been living and working in Hong Kong for a year with a concept group for restaurants, until the Covid-19 pandemic hit, and he moved back home in March 2020. With a specific interest in Asian-inspired cuisine himself, Jamie expressed excitement at how much the food scene here has improved in recent years and is looking forward to the show highlighting that, along with Northern Ireland’s homegrown food produce. As for his fellow contestants, he said they all…

The HSE has issued a warning to parents on primary school WhatsApp groups about the dangers of rumour mills naming a child who has Covid-19. hatsApp exchanges between parents could go into overdrive following the decision to abandon routine testing and tracing of primary schoolchildren who are close contacts of a classmate with the virus. But this potential flurry of exchanges, which can easily turn into a hotbed of well-meaning school gossip about a Covid-19 positive child, should not be posted. The HSE told parents that it is important that “a child’s confidentiality is not broken in line with normal GDPR requirements”. The advice warned: ”It is important that children and families do not feel targeted or pressure to release information.” It follows confirmation that school principals have been told there is “no clinical need” for information to be shared with parents of classmates if a pupil tests positive. However, parents should not send their child to school if they have possible symptoms of Covid-19 and they can contact their GP for free about arranging a test or book online. It comes as around 10,000 children, who were restricting movements after being identified as a close contact, returned to the…