How to Control Who Can Add You to WhatsApp Group Chats
Several years ago I went on a business trip to Scotland with journalists from other parts of the world. During the trip, we used WhatsApp to stay in touch, which encouraged members to stay connected through WhatsApp as well, especially in the form of group chats.
In recent years I’ve been added to probably two dozen different group chats with people from that group and even more with other people from similar travels. While I don’t mind staying connected, I’ve always wished keeping in touch didn’t entail continually adding me to new groups on the platform – especially adding me to these very active groups at 3 a.m., which always seems to happen when it does. going on. happens (hooray you have friends in the UK!).
On Wednesday, WhatsApp launched a new feature that should solve my problem: a way to prevent people from adding you to groups without your consent.
Now, in the application settings, you can choose whether anyone can add you to the group, no one, or only people from your contacts. You will find the setting under Settings> Privacy> Groups.
While this feature is great for solving my 3am problem, the idea is actually to help prevent misinformation from spreading. While WhatsApp is not used by everyone in the US, it is extremely popular in other countries. Before the Brazilian elections last year, campaigners used an app to add people to politically oriented groups without their consent , and then used those groups to spread misinformation. Think of all this “fake news” that circulates around Facebook during the US elections, and then pretend it comes to you via SMS. It is reported that the same is now happening in India .
Refusing to participate in groups does not mean that you cannot join them. If you choose to allow “anyone” to add you to group chats, you will receive a notification with a link every time someone tries to do so, and you can approve or decline the invitation. If you don’t click on the link within 72 hours, it will expire and you will never be added to the chat. In my case, for example, I can join this group in a reasonable hour and then turn off those notifications. In the case of an unwanted political group, you can simply decline the invitation.
This feature is currently available to select WhatsApp users and will be available to everyone in the coming weeks.