With over 3 billion monthly active users, WhatsApp has become the primary tool for communication, like iMessage around the world. But this has also led to the app becoming a cesspool for spam and the spread of false information. To combat this problem, WhatsApp will soon restrict users from participating in a new chat for abusive or spammy behavior.
WhatsApp fights spam with automatic chat limits | Anti-spam
This news comes from WABetaInfo, which discovered that the platform is experimenting with a feature to restrict the user account from starting a new chat in the latest WhatsApp Beta for Android version 2.24.10.5 update. This restriction will last for an undisclosed amount of time and serves as a penalty for certain violations in the app. You can see from the screenshot, starting a new conversation will show this popup message saying "Your account is restricted right now".
As for how WhatsApp detects these activities, WABetaInfo told us that the app uses automated tools to detect spam-like behavior, automated/bulk messages, or other activities that violate their terms of service. The good news here is that these tools cannot read your messages confirming that your privacy is not at stake. Instead, they scan patterns to detect suspicious activity.
It's also worth mentioning that this restriction only prohibits you from starting a new conversation. You can continue to reply to chats and groups that you engaged with before the restriction. The feature is still under development, but it will make its way to your WhatsApp in the future.
