Use of WhatsApp includes sharing certain information with others. However, here are some handy tips to help you better protect your privacy when using this instant messaging app.
The WhatsApp privacy settings you need to know
WhatsApp has some privacy settings that help you manage the information you show other users. To access them, open the app’s settings and tap Account and then up Privacy (Privacy).
Privacy Menu
Now you will see some options below Who can see my personal info (Who can see my personal information). That’s all we’ve ticked in the screenshot below.
Top privacy protection options
What are they all for?
- Last seen. Allows you to configure who can see when you last connected to WhatsApp..
- Profile photo. Used to control which users have access to your profile photo.
- About. This section refers to the short description that you can enter on WhatsApp in your profile.
- Status. Helps you choose which contacts can see the status updates you upload to WhatsApp.
- Read receipts. This feature enables or disables confirmation that messages have been read.
Last seen, Profile photo and About contain the same options. You can choose not to let anyone see this information, only your contacts to see it, or for everyone to see it. Status is a bit more flexible and allows you to select specific contacts. Read Options are an option that can generally be activated or deactivated.
In addition to these five settings, there are four more that are also discussed in the section Privacy are included. These can be seen in the image below.
Other privacy options
This is the purpose of each individual:
- Groups. From here you can specify who can add you to a group. The options are Everyone, My Contacts or My Contacts except (All, My Contacts, or My Contacts Except).
- Live location. From here you can manage the broadcasting of your location in real time.
- Blocked contacts. This section contains the list of blocked contacts. It is also possible to add new contacts here.
- Fingerprint lock. Option to protect WhatsApp thanks to the fingerprint reader.
As you can see, there are many different ways to increase privacy in WhatsApp. We recommend that you spend some time configuring them to control the information you show other people as much as possible. However, these are not the only settings available to you.
Other ways to protect your privacy on WhatsApp
There are some additional steps you can take to increase your privacy protection on WhatsApp.
Report the user to WhatsApp if you receive spam
If you feel harassed by someone or you receive too many commercial messages, you have the option of reporting this to WhatsApp. Just open the conversation menu, click More and then choose Report.
Report user to WhatsApp
If you are sure, confirm with the Reportbutton you see in the pop-up dialog. if you Block contact and delete chat (Block contact and delete chat checkbox) enabled, the conversation will be deleted and the user will be blocked.
Confirm report to moderators
The moderators of the service will assess the case. In some cases, they can even delete the user’s account.
Activate two-factor verification
If you navigate to WhatsApp settings, you will see under Account die Option Two-step verification (Two-Step Verification).
Two-factor authentication
By tapping the Enablebutton will activate it for you.
Enable two-factor authentication
You use it to create a PIN. After that, you’ll need to use it every time you sign in on a new device. This is an extra layer of security on top of SMS verification.
Enable temporary messages
In the list of options for each conversation, you’ll see an option called Disappearing messages (disappearing messages).
Temporary Messages
Tap to enable temporary messages.
Enable temporary messages
From this point onwards Messages older than 7 days, automatically disappear. This way you get shorter chat histories with your contacts and save less information in your chats. In some cases, this behavior of WhatsApp will significantly improve the protection of your privacy.
Prevent the received images from being visible in the gallery
dFinally, here’s how to prevent the photos you receive via WhatsApp from are visible in your phone’s gallery. Go to the application’s settings and tap on Chats. Next, disable the option Media visibility (Media Visibility).
Delete whatsapp photos from gallery
You should know that although the photos will be hidden from the device’s Gallery application, the files will still be stored on the internal storage. Therefore, they can be viewed by anyone with the right knowledge.