WhatsApp Fake Message in Circulation to Falsely Claim Red Ticks Indicate Government’s Control

A fake WhatsApp message is in circulation that talks about the government’s control over the instant messaging app. The message claims, “Two blue ticks, and one red tick means the government can take action, while three red ticks will mean the government has started court proceedings against you.” This is false as WhatsApp has not made any changes to its system to inform users about the delivery of messages through ‘ticks’ aka check marks. The misleading message comes amid a legal fight between WhatsApp and the government over the recently introduced IT rules in the country.

The message, that has been circulated across many WhatsApp groups and is tagged with ‘forwarded many times’ label, falsely claims that WhatsApp is bringing new communication rules for messages and calls that will connect devices to the government. It also mentions that the new system will allow the law enforcement authorities to take action against people posting messages and videos against the government.

All the claims specified in the message are false as WhatsApp has not announced any updates to its system. The existing methodology to show ticks or check marks for read receipts also remains the same as before. This means that you’ll only see grey and blue ticks, depending on the status of message delivery and your WhatsApp settings.