WhatsApp Security Guide: Privacy Settings You Should Turn On Right Now

Want better privacy on WhatsApp? Learn the essential settings every user should enable, from two-step verification to hiding personal information, to keep chats, calls, and account details more secure.

One of the most popular messaging applications today is WhatsApp, which attracts a lot of hackers, scams, and unsolicited communications. However, apart from several available privacy settings within the application, most people rarely make any changes to their default settings. However, spending several minutes checking the privacy settings will ensure your security online and prevent any additional exposure of your private data.

Restrict Access to Personal Information

Profile picture, last seen, online, and About tabs include a lot more data than you may think. It is essential to limit access to this data in order to avoid exposing it to strangers.

Recommendations:

• Set the Last Seen and Online tabs to be visible only to My Contacts or a selected number of people.
• Do not show your Profile Picture to anyone but your Contacts.
• Limit access to your About information.

Enable Two-Factor Authentication

Two-factor authentication is one of the essential security tools provided by the app and involves setting up a six-digit PIN which is necessary upon registration of your phone number again, thus, making any takeover of your account practically impossible. Keep your recovery email address up-to-date in case of forgetting your PIN to get back your account.

Manage Group Invitations

Getting randomly added to WhatsApp groups is extremely bothering and may even result in sharing your phone number with unknown people. However, WhatsApp offers a great solution – control who is able to add you to groups. Select either My Contacts or My Contacts Except...to reduce unwanted group invitations.

Chat Locking and Additional Device Security

In case your device falls into the hands of another person, all your chats become open to him or her. Thus, you can use the option of locking some specific chats and also lock your device using face ID, fingerprints or passcode.

Regular Review of Your Privacy Settings

Apps usually keep getting updated very frequently, so remember to review your privacy settings regularly. Always update WhatsApp to the latest version and do not click on suspicious links or share your verification code.

A Few Minutes Make a Huge Impact

WhatsApp security enhancement does not demand any technical skills. It is possible to make your WhatsApp account more secure by changing only a few settings available in the app itself. With them, you will be able to control the people who can access your information and increase your account’s security.