WhatsApp Lets You Control Who Can Add You To Groups

WhatsApp has started rolling out the highly anticipated Group Privacy settings to both Android and iOS users. This new update will let WhatsApp users choose who can actually add them to the groups on the messaging platform. The update is now being rolled out with the iOS 2.19.110.20 and Android Beta 2.19.298 versions.

Well, WhatsApp has been working on the new feature a while ago. It was under testing and the company has taken a time period of almost six months to roll out the same to its users. While both iOS and Android versions of the app will get these features, the former will get it first followed by the latter, claims WABetaInfo.

WhatsApp Group Privacy Settings

To let users select who can add them to the groups, users have to do the following. After updating the app to the latest version, WhatsApp users will be able to see a new set of group privacy features under Settings → Account → Privacy → Groups. There will be three ways to do the same - Everyone, My Contacts, and My Contacts Except as in the Status tab.

Choosing the Everyone option will let anyone with the contact's phone number can add the person to groups. My Contacts, it is possible to allow only all the contacts in the phonebook of the contact to groups. Lastly, the third option will let only select contacts add them to groups. WhatsApp group admins who cannot add users can send the invite privately to the users.

Prior to this new feature, WhatsApp has been bringing many new group privacy controls. In India, several users were facing the issue of automatically getting added to random groups sans their consent. To change this scenario, the instant messaging app came up with new group privacy controls. However, the option of group invite for random group addition remains an issue.

Previously, WhatsApp had the Nobody option that restricts all users from adding a specific number to groups. Now, this option has been removed as new group privacy controls are available.

What We Think

The new feature from WhatsApp that lets users choose who can add them to groups on the instant messaging platform is quite interesting. It gives the required privacy that users actually need.