WhatsApp and parent company Meta (formerly Facebook) have never had the strongest reputation for privacy. In an effort to try to prove that WhatsApp really does care about your privacy, the company has introduced two new privacy-focused features.
The first is a privacy checkup that walks you through your current privacy settings and shows you all the options available to you. The second feature gives users the ability to silence incoming calls from numbers that aren’t recognised.
If you’re sick of getting annoyingWhatsApp callsfrom unknown numbers, then here’s how to silence spam calls in WhatsApp.
Why has WhatsApp launched these new privacy features?
WhatsApp and privacy don’t always go hand-in-hand. In 2021, WhatsApp announced that it was updating its privacy policy to allow WhatsApp user data to be shared with parent company Meta. This caused millions of users to flee the service and move to rival messaging appssuch as Telegram.
Understandably, in light of this user exodus, WhatsApp is keen to promote itself as a privacy-focused app. These new privacy features are at least a small step in the right direction. However, other messaging apps such as Signal still offer far higher levels of privacy than WhatsApp currently does.
How to silence unknown WhatsApp callers on Android
This feature should now be available to all WhatsApp users. If you don’t see it within your WhatsApp Privacy settings, then you may need to update WhatsApp on your device in order for it to appear.
To silence spam WhatsApp calls on Android:
Any calls from unknown callers will no longer ring on your phone. They will still be saved inCalls,so you can always check that the call wasn’t from someone you know.
How to silence unknown WhatsApp callers on iPhone
On iOS, the layout of WhatsApp is a little different, but you’ll find this option in a similar location.
To silence spam WhatsApp calls on iOS:
Any calls from unknown numbers will be silenced, but you can still find a history of all the calls you receive in theCallstab.
Is WhatsApp really private?
Whilst the ability to silence spam calls on WhatsApp is useful, it’s a bit of a stretch to call it a privacy feature. The calls still come through to your phone, even if they don’t ring. If your curiosity gets the better of you, you may end up calling a spam caller back just to find out if it was someone you knew.
The new privacy checkup is a useful reminder to check your privacy settings, but all the settings it includes could already be found in the app. The bigger privacy concerns are the data that WhatsApp collects on you, and who it shares that data with. If you’re concerned about privacy on WhatsApp, the best bet is still to move to a more private alternative,such as Signal.
