WhatsApp users who are situated in Kashmir will be kicked off the application due to inactivity.
There has been a four month internet blackout in the region imposed by the Indian government. This has led to users being unable to access the application.
The owner of WhatsApp, Facebook, has said that once the blackout has been lifted, users will need to be re-added to any groups that they may have once been a party to.
“upon regaining access to the internet”
WhatsApp have a great thing going in India, with over 400 million of users situated within the borders.
This translates to it being the biggest market of the messaging service globally.
“To maintain security and limit data retention, WhatsApp accounts generally expire after 120 days of inactivity.
“When that happens, those accounts automatically exit all their WhatsApp groups. People will need to be re-added to groups upon regaining access to the internet and joining WhatsApp again.” A WhatsApp spokesperson stated.
The region of Kashmir has been stripped of all autonomy since August and the area has been split into two federally run territories.
The reason for the blackout, quoted from India’s Foreign Minister Subrahmanyam Jaishankar, “social media and the internet had been used to radicalise people.”
