AfterDawn: News

Secret code found in WhatsApp beta - adds support to payment transactions

Mobile payments have been the de facto method of making person-to-person payments in developing countries for more than a decade now - and the rest of the world is catching up, it seems. Obviously, the fact that most people in developing countries don't have a bank account, but most of them have access to a mobile phone has created such seemingly weird disparity between the industrial countries and developing countries.

Now, tech companies around the world have finally decided to jump he bandwagon before the market has matured. Facebook introduced payment transactions to its Messenger app in United States and is rumored to expand the service to India soon.



Facebook's other messaging product, WhatsApp hasn't made such move previously - until now. People have dug through the latest Android beta version's code and have found out that the app has hidden feature to support UPI payment model, standardized in India.

Beta version has TOS clauses that ask user to approve WhatsApp's payment policy and user's own bank's payment policy before proceeding with transactions.

Meanwhile, Paytm, a mobile payment company that has 200 million users in India, is rumored to add messaging capabilities to its payment app in near future. Thus, making the Paytm and WhatsApp to go head-to-head in India, where both companies have 200M+ active users.

Written by: Petteri Pyyny @ 11 Aug 2017 5:39

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• 2 comments

• Jemborg

  I had no idea.
  
  Do beggars in the street have mobiles too?
  
  
  
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  Its a lot easier being righteous than right.
  
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  17.8.2017 02:43 #1

• g_slide

  Originally posted by Jemborg: I had no idea.
  
  Do beggars in the street have mobiles too?
  
  
  
  --------------------------------------------------------------- Hello yeah most beggars do have mobile phones, or cars, and some trailers. In my area in California they use their kids or pets as props to get more money out of us. It is so sad and pathetic as they make it harder for the real people that need it, that more difficult for people to believe they need help.
  
  About a year ago these two guys were sitting on the ground next to the Subway entrance door and asked me for money, I never carry cash. So I decided to buy them both their own Footlong sandwich, Chips, and Soda.
  
  They were both surprised and happy and than began to ate their food immediately. Yeah it cost me more money than just handing them a dollar and they probably preferred cash, but at least they can't pocket the money for some type of scam and got a good lunch out of it. ;-)

  18.8.2017 20:34 #2