Hide your number in WhatsApp – what you need to know

by Johannes

Some people want to hide their number in WhatsApp to protect their privacy. In the future, WhatsApp will work with user names.

Can you hide your number in WhatsApp?

If you want to add a contact in WhatsApp and communicate with them, you need their phone number. Conversely, this means the following for you:

  • Your number cannot be hidden in WhatsApp at this time. Only WhatsApp users who have your phone number can chat with you.

  • If someone you don’t know contacts you and you don’t want them to be able to reach you via WhatsApp, you should block the WhatsApp contact. This will prevent any further communication.

  • If you don’t agree to this, you will be forced to switch to other services for chats where you want to hide your number. In the Telegram app, for example, you can add contacts not only via their phone number, but also via their username, thereby hiding your number. Telegram is available for your desktop PC, Android, and iOS.

  • However, according to WABetainfo, WhatsApp is planning to roll out a similar feature: In the future, you will have the option of creating a unique username for WhatsApp. You can then share this with others when you want them to add you on WhatsApp.

  • You will still need to provide your phone number if you want to use WhatsApp, but in future you will no longer be required to disclose it to other users.

Why WhatsApp needs your phone number

WhatsApp only works with a valid mobile phone number, and there are good reasons for this.

  • WhatsApp uses your phone number as your central user ID. When you set up your account, your mobile phone number is required for verification and also allows others to find and contact you.

  • WhatsApp relies on a simple principle: contacts are currently recognized via the address book and not via user names or IDs. In the future, however, it will also be possible to contact people via user names.

How to protect your privacy in WhatsApp

Even if your number remains visible, you can prevent others from getting too much information about you with the right settings:

  • Restrict your profile picture: In WhatsApp, go to “Settings ☻ Privacy ☻ Profile Picture.” Here you can choose whether your picture is visible to everyone, only your contacts, selected contacts, or no one.

  • Control status messages: Under “Status,” you can decide who sees your status updates and block them for certain people. You can choose between “My contacts,” “My contacts except…,” or “Only share with…”.

  • “Last seen” & ‘Online’ status: WhatsApp allows you to hide your online status. Under “Settings ☻ Privacy ☻ Last seen & online,” you can specify exactly who can see when you were last active—or whether you appear online at all.

  • Turn off read receipts: Disable the blue check marks under “Privacy ☻ Read receipts” if you don’t want others to know when you’ve read their messages.

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