Texting plans used to be expensive, and you could easily rack up hefty charges if you used up your allotted amount. And forget about having group conversations or chatting with people from other countries. Over-the-top messengers that used your data connection to send texts were the solution, and WhatsApp was the first mobile messaging platform to achieve critical mass. Since then, it has been purchased by Meta (formerly Facebook), its security has been improved, and it has entered a long period of mild stagnation that continues to this day. It’s still an excellent free app, and it’s the biggest player in the secure messaging business, with a foundation built on excellent technology and a massive built-in audience. Still, its future is uncertain, particularly as law enforcement continues to target its security.
WhatsApp works hard to earn your trust, which is the foundation of any secure messaging app. For starters, it is based on the tried-and-true Signal Protocol, which is used to send and receive end-to-end encrypted (E2EE) messages. Messages can only be read by the sender and the intended recipient. Even WhatsApp (and, by extension, Meta) cannot read your messages. Other messengers, such as Facebook Messenger and Telegram, offer E2EE as an option in limited circumstances, whereas WhatsApp and Signal make it the default.
There is one exception to WhatsApp’s encryption scheme: any communication with businesses. According to WhatsApp’s disastrous privacy policy update, WhatsApp and others may be able to see what you say in any interactions with business accounts. In practice, this exception isn’t a problem, but when it comes to encryption, things get complicated.
Because WhatsApp is owned by Meta (again, Facebook), it is difficult to fully endorse the messenger. Meta has been dogged by scandals over the amount of data it collects on its users. Recently, it was revealed that Meta has no control over what its corporate partners do with your data. For the time being, the divide between WhatsApp and its corporate overlords appears to be strong, but this could change in the future.
WhatsApp goes to great lengths to explain Meta’s knowledge of WhatsApp activities. WhatsApp’s Privacy Policy frequently mentions it, and there’s an entire FAQ article devoted to the subject. According to WhatsApp, Meta cannot see your contacts or messages, but Meta can see your phone number, IP address, and any WhatsApp interactions with businesses. That’s a lot of personal information.
WhatsApp apps are available for most mobile and desktop devices, and they can also be accessed via a web portal. Previously, you had to have your phone nearby and online in order to use connected WhatsApp apps, but this is no longer the case. However, just like Signal and Telegram, setting up an account with WhatsApp requires a valid phone number. All of these apps are about securing your messages, not anonymous textingâÂÂthough Editors’ Choice winner Signal is developing an accounting system that is at least partially independent of phone numbers.
WhatsApp, like other messengers, will nag you for access to your Contacts list. You can still receive messages and respond to them, but you won’t be able to create new Chats or Group Chats. Telegram has some limitations, and Signal allows you to manually type a number to message someone. WhatsApp appears to do a good job of protecting the privacy of your Contacts list, employing cryptographic hashes rather than storing phone numbers on its servers.
WhatsApp, like most messaging apps, displays conversations in cartoonish speech bubbles, with your posts on the right and recipients on the left. Settings allow you to turn on or off read receipts and change the background of Chats. WhatsApp now allows you to block screenshots for images marked as view-once, as well as set default message durations, giving you a lot of control over your messages.
Buttons next to the bottom text field make it simple to add images, videos, and short bursts of audio to your conversation. You can also attach a GPS location to your message, send files (up to 2GB), and share contact information. The three-dot menu displays an overview of all your shared media in a specific Chat. On Android, tap the smiley face icon to access a menu of emojis, reaction GIFs, and, most importantly, WhatsApp’s surprising and robust collection of static and animated stickers. You can look through your saved stickers list, add new ones, and download apps that add new stickers. WhatsApp recently introduced personalized avatars, which are similar to Apple’s emoji. It’s a much livelier community than Signal has fostered, despite the fact that Signal makes privacy guarantees about its stickers that other apps cannot. WhatsApp lacks live filters and AR masks similar to those found in Apple Messages.
There are several other types of messages. Statuses are similar to Instagram Reels in that they allow you to create short videos that expire after 24 hours. Broadcasts, accessible via the three-dot menu, are essentially blind carbon-copy messages that allow you to send the same message to multiple recipients as one-on-one conversations. It’s useful for things like holiday messages and keeps strangers out of awkward reply-all conversations. Broadcasts have a 256-person limit and are saved as lists for easy re-use, but they are easily confused with Group Chats.
Signal has avoided using tools such as Statuses and Broadcasts, instead focusing on secure group and one-on-one voice, video, and text messaging. Meanwhile, Telegram has expanded its features to include Twitch-style live streaming, public and private blogs, and community groups. Telegram’s expansion has come at a cost; it has been at the epicenter of global events while also serving as a haven for misinformation and fringe groups.
WhatsApp launched its new Communities feature in November 2022. These are chats with additional management tools designed for larger, more diverse groups of people. They can accommodate up to 1024 users and 32 people in video calls. It’s a strong push against Telegram’s social tools and a good differentiator from Signal.
Creating groups in WhatsApp is simple. You choose people from your contacts, name the group, and you’re ready to begin messaging them. The administrator is the person who creates the group by default, and an admin can make other group members admins at any time. Administrators can add new members manually after the fact, or they can export a QR code or a shareable link that other invitees can use to join the group. You can also set a timer for how long messages in each group will be displayed. WhatsApp has some other useful settings that are similar to Signal in scope, such as limiting posts to only the members you choose. Telegram provides far more fine-grained control over group permissions, but it is worth noting that Telegram does not use E2EE for any of its group messaging.
WhatsApp CANCEL GUIDES
Get together the following account information:
First Name
Last Name
Phone Number
Email Address
Username
Password
Billing Address
City
State/Province/Region
ZIP/Postal Code
Country
Reason for Cancellation
Last 4 Digits of Card
Date of Last Charge
Amount of Last Charge
Follow these steps:
Compose an email including your account information
Advise the rep that you need to cancel
Be sure to get a confirmation number or email for the cancellation
