WhatsApp had earlier turned down the request to trace the origin of such messages, citing that it would undermine users’ privacy.
After meeting WhatsApp’s vice-president Chris Daniels, IT Minister Ravi Shankar Prasad said that the government emphasized that traceability did not include decrypting of messages. “We insist rather on location and identification of the sender when such messages lead to provocation of violence, heinous offences and other serious crimes,” he said.
The company has assured the government to look into the matter and believes in educating users about ways of identifying false news and spreading them.
The company along with Jio, has started a campaign to make people aware of using WhatsApp safely and responsibly through street plays, art and conversations in 10 cities of UP and Rajasthan.
India has the single largest user base with 200 million people using WhatsApp here out of 1.2 billion worldwide.