WhatsApp: Simple privacy guide

WhatsApp has nearly a half a billion subscribers.  Being able to share photos, videos and messages for free, and its user friendly interface makes it very appealing.

Setting your security controls on WhatsApp is easy but many seem to ignore it because it’s a messaging tool after all, and not a social media application which we know is more intrusive.  Even as a messaging application there are some basic security tips you should follow to keep your messages, pictures and videos secure, and your information safe.

Who can see your personal information?

Many of us put up a profile picture and status comment.  It gives our phone number a personal touch for our friends.  As a minimum, your privacy setting for this should be set to "My contacts" and not "Everyone".

Why?  Let’s take the following (extreme) scenario: you have an unwanted admirer who is keen to get in touch with you but you refuse to share your number.  The unwanted admirer manages to get a phone number from a random friend which he thinks is yours but not 100% sure if it is your number.  Once they has saved this phone number onto their phone and synced it to WhatsApp, if your profile picture is a one of you and/or profile name is your real name and set to “Everyone” than your unwanted admirer now definitely knows this number is yours.  By having your privacy setting set to “My contacts” “or “Nobody” the person is still none the wiser.

There maybe exceptions to this rule if your WhatsApp number is your business number and you want potential customers to see your brand.

Block WhatsApp photos from appearing in photo gallery

Occasionally conversations can turn saucy.  If you are sharing saucy pictures with your partner, or your bit-on-the-side, you would not want these to appear in your general photo gallery.  There have many cases where the cheating spouse has been caught out by their partner because the suspicious partner found photos of the bit-on-the-side in their partner’s phone’s photo gallery which were sent over WhatsApp.

 

By excluding WhatsApp images from saving to your phone memory provides another layer of security if your phone is stolen.

 

Watch out for scams

WhatsApp does not send e-mails about its services or terms and conditions (how can they, WhatsApp does not have your e-mail address), unless you e-mail their help and support to begin with.

Anything offering a free subscription via WhatsApp and claiming to be from WhatsApp is definitely a scam and should not to be trusted.