Guwahati, July 2 -- The Union government has directed Meta-owned WhatsApp to suspend the rollout of its proposed username feature in India, citing fears that it could increase cyber fraud, phishing attacks and impersonation scams.

The Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MeitY) has issued a notice to Meta asking the company not to introduce the feature until consultations with the government are completed. The ministry has also sought a detailed explanation and supporting documents within three days on the feature's design, safeguards and potential risks.

WhatsApp recently announced plans to introduce usernames that would allow users to connect without sharing their phone numbers, describing the feature as a privacy enhan...