Brazil's INSS rolls out WhatsApp alerts amid surge in automated benefit denials

The National Institute of Social Security (INSS) in Brazil has started using its verified government WhatsApp account to send appointment reminders to citizens who have applied for the Benefício de Prestação Continuada (BPC). The messages include the date, time, location and attendance instructions, and explicitly state that no passwords, payments, CPF numbers or bank details will be requested, urging recipients to verify the official account and avoid unknown links.

An internal audit covering the first half of 2025 showed that more than half of benefit requests processed automatically by INSS robots were rejected – 280,231 out of 543,419, or 51.57%. Some denials occurred within minutes. The high rejection rate has drawn criticism from the OAB‑ES and prompted the Federal Court of Accounts (TCU) to order the INSS, the Ministry of Social Security and Dataprev to implement corrective measures within 180 days, highlighting concerns about access to essential income for elderly and disabled Brazilians and the growing load on the judiciary.