Cyber criminals’ 8.9 Million WhatsApp Accounts Just Vanished Overnight! UP govt crackdown

NEW DELHI – The digital shadows where cyber-criminals once felt invincible are being dismantled. In a massive, coordinated strike against “ghost” operators, authorities have officially pulled the plug on nearly 9 million WhatsApp accounts as part of a radical new crackdown on the country’s skyrocketing digital fraud crisis.

As of late 2025, the era of the “untraceable” VoIP scammer is officially over.

The Purge: 8.96 Million ‘Ghost’ Numbers Cancelled

The Department of Telecommunications (DoT) and Meta have executed a scorched-earth policy against SIM-less WhatsApp VoIP numbers. Historically, scammers used these virtual numbers to bypass traditional KYC (Know Your Customer) checks, operating entirely from outside the grid.

• The Crackdown: Exactly 8.96 million of these rogue accounts were deactivated in a single sweep.
• The New Rule: WhatsApp must now “bind” to an active, physical SIM card. If the SIM is removed or becomes inactive, the WhatsApp account is automatically flagged for termination.
• Web Re-Authentication: To prevent “ghost sessions” where hackers keep control of a victim’s account via desktop, the system now mandates a QR-code re-login every 6 hours.

1.5 Million Crimes in 12 Months: The Breaking Point

This “nuclear option” comes after a terrifying surge in digital crime. India reported a staggering 1.5 million cyber crimes in just the last year. From “Digital Arrests” to sophisticated “Pig Butchering” investment scams, over 95% of these incidents began with a simple, unsolicited WhatsApp message.

“The scale of the attack was industrial,” said a Ministry of Home Affairs official. “By allowing accounts to exist without a verifiable, physical SIM link, we were giving criminals a permanent cloak of invisibility. That cloak has been shredded.”

The 48-Hour Deadline: No More Delays

In perhaps the most controversial move yet, WhatsApp has signed a landmark Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with Indian law enforcement. Under this agreement, the platform has committed to a lightning-fast data-sharing protocol.

Note: While end-to-end encryption remains for message content, the metadata who you talked to, when, and from where—is now accessible to investigators almost instantly.

Is Your Account Safe?

For the average user, these changes mean more security but slightly more “friction.” If you use WhatsApp Web for work, you will notice more frequent logouts. If you travel and swap SIM cards, you may be required to re-verify your identity.

However, for the 8.9 million “shadow accounts” already purged, the message is clear: the digital playground for criminals is closing for good.