Digital arrest: Over 9,400 WhatsApp accounts blocked, Centre tells Supreme Court

NEW DELHI: More than 9,400 WhatsApp accounts linked to India and involved in the so-called ‘digital arrest’ scam have been banned since January 2026, Attorney General R. Venkataramani told the Supreme Court.

The development came to light through a note submitted by the Attorney General before the apex court, which is hearing the matter suo motu in view of the rising number of ‘digital arrest’ fraud cases across the country.

According to the note, the accounts were identified and removed by WhatsApp as part of its internal investigation into organised scam networks targeting Indian users.

The probe revealed that many of these fraudulent accounts were being operated from centres located in Southeast Asian countries, outside India’s jurisdiction.

As per the findings shared in court, scammers used misleading names such as ‘Delhi Police’, ‘Mumbai Headquarters’, ‘CBI’, and ‘ATS Department’ in their WhatsApp profiles. They also displayed official-looking government logos as profile pictures to gain the trust of unsuspecting users.

The note further highlighted that the investigation by WhatsApp was initiated based on inputs received from multiple government agencies, including the Indian Cyber Crime Coordination Centre under the Ministry of Home Affairs, the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology, and the Department of Telecommunications. (IANS)

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