Many of us enjoy updating our WhatsApp Status frequently to share what we’re up to, express our feelings, or show off our latest travel adventures. But let’s be honest—do all your contacts need to see your Status? Probably not. Sometimes, you may want to hide your updates from specific people, whether it’s a work colleague, a distant acquaintance, or even a family member.
Thankfully, WhatsApp gives users control over who can view their Status updates. With a few simple privacy settings, you can decide exactly who gets to see your posts.
In this guide, we’ll explain how to manage your WhatsApp Status privacy, along with other useful privacy features.
Hiding WhatsApp Status Updates from Certain Contacts
WhatsApp provides various privacy options to let you decide who sees your Status updates, similar to how you can control who sees your “Last Seen” status, profile photo, and About info. If you’d like to hide your Status from certain people, follow these steps.
Steps to Hide Your WhatsApp Status Updates
- Open WhatsApp and Go to Status: On the home screen, tap the Status tab. You can either swipe left on Android or tap Status in the lower left corner on iOS.
- Access Status Privacy:
- For Android: Tap the three dots in the top-right corner, then select Status Privacy.
- For iPhone: Tap Privacy in the upper left corner.
- Choose Your Privacy Setting: You’ll see three options:
- My Contacts: Shares your Status with all contacts saved in your phone.
- My Contacts Except…: Allows you to exclude specific contacts from viewing your Status.
- Only Share With…: Lets you choose only specific contacts to see your Status.
- Adjust Your Setting: Select the contacts you want to exclude (if choosing “My Contacts Except…”) or the contacts you want to include (if choosing “Only Share With…”). Save your selection, and you’re all set!
Note: You must set your Status privacy before posting an update. Any privacy changes made after posting won’t affect the visibility of previously shared updates.
Additional Privacy Features on WhatsApp
Aside from Status updates, WhatsApp offers several other privacy controls to help you manage what personal information is shared with others.
Controlling Your Last Seen, Profile Photo, and About Info
WhatsApp lets you decide who can see your Last Seen, Profile Photo, and About info. You have four options for each of these:
- Everyone: Visible to all WhatsApp users.
- My Contacts: Only visible to people saved in your phone’s contacts.
- My Contacts Except…: Exclude specific contacts from viewing this information.
- Nobody: Hides the information from everyone.
These options allow you to customize your privacy based on your needs.
Blocking Contacts
If there are people you’d rather not engage with at all, you can simply block them. Blocking prevents them from viewing your Status, Last Seen, Profile Photo, and About info, and they won’t be able to message or call you on WhatsApp.
New Privacy and Sharing Features on WhatsApp
In recent updates, WhatsApp has introduced new features to improve user privacy and experience:
- Enhanced Last Seen Privacy: You can now hide your “Last Seen” from specific contacts by choosing “My Contacts Except…” This allows you to control visibility on a more granular level.
- Communities Feature: WhatsApp introduced Communities, a feature that allows related groups to connect in a single place (like work teams, school classes, or neighborhood groups). This makes it easier to manage and organize multiple group chats.
- 2GB File Sharing: WhatsApp now supports file sharing up to 2GB, making it easier to share large files directly through the app.
In Summary
If you want to keep your WhatsApp Status updates private, it’s easy to control who can see them. Here’s a quick recap:
- Use My Contacts Except… to exclude specific contacts from seeing your Status.
- Use Only Share With… to allow only select contacts to view your Status.
- Remember to adjust your privacy settings before posting, as changes won’t affect existing updates.
With these privacy options, WhatsApp lets you share what you want, with whom you want. So go ahead, update your Status with confidence and share only with those you’re comfortable with!
For more tips on making the most of WhatsApp, stay tuned for future updates.