The WhatsApp message claim has been refuted by the PIB (Press Bureau of India) fact check handle, which has also confirmed that the government is not reading any messages.
HIGHLIGHTS
- According to the claim, the Indian government has published a new WhatsApp policy that outlines how to monitor discussions and take appropriate action.
- According to the fake news, if your WhatsApp message contains three red ticks, the government has taken legal action against you.
- To be clear, WhatsApp does not have red ticks. Just grey ticks that change to blue when the message is read.
Spreading false and misleading information on social media platforms, particularly WhatsApp, is nothing new. One such false rumour that has been circulating on the Internet is that the government monitors what messages people send on WhatsApp.
Such communications can be laughed off by someone who is tech savvy because WhatsApp messages are end-to-end encrypted and only the sender and recipient will be aware of them. Others, however, have had the false information debunked by the Indian government’s PIB Fact Check Twitter account (now ‘X’, no thanks Elon).
The Indian government doesn’t read your WhatsApp messages
The encryption for WhatsApp messages is end-to-end.
- The Internet was flooded with an unfounded assertion that the “Government of India has released a new WhatsApp guideline to monitor chats and take action against people” was the cause of the entire situation.
- On WhatsApp, a single tick indicates that the message has been sent, a double tick indicates that it has been delivered, and a blue tick indicates that the recipient has read the message. Up to this point, we are already aware of this.
- The misleading element comes next. The proponents of the unfounded claim claim that if there are three blue ticks, the government has read the messages. The government may take action against you if you receive two Blue and one Red tick. If there are two red ticks along with a blue tick, the government is screening your data. Finally, if the notice has three red ticks, the government has taken legal action against you and you will soon receive a court summons.
- The erroneous assertion has been refuted by the PIB (Press Bureau of India) Fact Check handle, assuring the public that the government does not read any messages.
On WhatsApp, there are no red question marks.
First off, WhatsApp doesn’t have any red ticks. Only grey ticks exist, and they turn blue after the message is read. Therefore, it is better to disregard any assertion that the government is reading your correspondence or that there is a red tick.
The government of India does not read your WhatsApp or other social media messages, and no action would be taken solely based on the message, according to PIB Fact Check. On July 15, 2021, the Supreme Court of India ruled that WhatsApp conversations lack any value as evidence.
