Getting Unknown WhatsApp Calls? Just ‘Block And Report’

New Delhi: A lot of WhatsApp users in India have reported receiving missed calls from unknown international numbers of late. Going by the ISD codes, these calls, both audio and video, often originate from countries like Malaysia, Kenya, Vietnam and Ethiopia. There is no information on who these callers are and what their agendas are. Several users have been taking screenshots of their call records and flooding Twitter with their complaints and grievances.

Responding to the concerns, WhatsApp issued a statement and advised users to immediately block and report suspicious accounts so that required action can be taken.

”At WhatsApp, the safety of our users is at the core of everything we do and we have devoted efforts to empower users with resources and tools that equip them to safeguard themselves from scams. WhatsApp is an industry leader in preventing abuse, among end-to-end encrypted messaging services and over the years we have made significant product investments and launched user awareness campaigns that empower users to stay safe. Blocking and Reporting suspicious messages/ calls is an important step to effectively combat scams and when users receive calls from unknown international or domestic phone numbers.” WhatsApp said in a statement to NDTV.

”Additionally, we have consistently invested in Artificial Intelligence and other state-of-the-art technology, data scientists and experts, and in processes, in order to keep our users safe on our platform. Our monthly user safety report that we publish in accordance with the IT Rules 2021, contains details of the user complaints received and the corresponding action taken by WhatsApp, as well as WhatsApp’s own preventive actions to combat abuse on our platform. As captured in the latest Monthly Report, WhatsApp banned over 4.7 million accounts in the month of March alone,” the statement added.

The company also stated that it has launched a safety campaign “Stay safe with WhatsApp” to educate users about its in-built product features and safety tools like Two-Step Verification, Block and Report, and Privacy controls, as safeguards to help protect users from online scams, frauds, and account compromising threats.

Here’s how you can block a number on WhatsApp

1. To block a number on WhatsApp, users first need to open a chat with the contact
2. Next, click on the three dots next to the call option
3. Tap More, and Block the number

Blocked contacts will no longer be able to call you or send you messages. Your last seen, online, status updates, and any changes made to your profile photo will no longer be visible to contacts you’ve blocked.