Meta will begin testing a monthly message cap for its WhatsApp application to address spam. This test, launching in multiple countries in the coming weeks, will limit how many messages users and businesses can send to recipients who have not replied.
The policy, confirmed to TechCrunch, will count all outgoing messages from users and businesses against a monthly limit unless the recipient sends a response. To illustrate the mechanism, Meta explained, “if you meet someone at a conference and send three messages, that counts against the limit.” The rule applies equally to personal accounts and business profiles operating on the messaging service.
The company has not disclosed the specific number that will constitute the monthly message cap. In a statement, Meta said the change is designed to affect “people and businesses that blast messages and spam people,” and it should not impact the activity of regular users. The specific countries where the test will be implemented have not been named, with the company only revealing the trial will be active in several nations soon.
This initiative is not the first by Meta to manage the spam issue affecting WhatsApp’s global user base of more than 3 billion people. Over the past several years, the company has deployed a series of features and safeguards primarily aimed at reducing political and commercial spam. These previous measures have proven to be only partly effective, as senders of unsolicited messages frequently find ways to work around the restrictions.
Meta’s latest anti-spam measure is being developed as WhatsApp prepares to introduce username support. This upcoming feature will permit users to connect without exchanging phone numbers, a change that could potentially increase opportunities for spam. Although no official release date has been set for the username function, a handle reservation screen is in development for Android, and comparable code has been identified in the iOS beta version.
