WhatsApp trick: Avoid unwanted messages! How to block someone from adding you to a group

While there is no doubt that WhatsApp Groups are a blessing, allowing families and friends to stay together and communicate with ease. Yet, they can also be annoying at times, a problem WhatsApp is trying to deal with. These groups serve as the perfect place for spreading misinformation. WhatsApp claims that viral or ‘highly forwarded’ messages on the platform have been reduced by around 70 per cent since the app introduced new forwarding limits. 

The new measures were introduced at the beginning of April in response to the spread of coronavirus-related misinformation on the service. The new limit ensured that any message that has already been forwarded by five or more people can now only be forwarded to a single person or group.

Despite this, if you don’t want to be added to WhatsApp Groups and stay further away from unwanted messages, there is a WhatsApp trick using which you can stop someone from adding you to a group. Here is what you need to do to block people from adding you to a WhatsApp group -

- Open WhatsApp, and tap on the three dots at the top-right corner of the screen.

- Go to Settings from the menu. 

- In the Accounts menu, select Privacy.

- Look for the Groups option and tap on it.

- Here, you can select who can add you to groups - everyone, or your WhatsApp contacts, or nobody.

Now, the users need to know that choosing one of these options wouldn't prevent people from adding you to groups. But, you will receive an invite to join the group privately. Here, you can see a few members' names, the group icon and its description. You can decline the request after reading the details. 

In case there is a particular user you want to block from adding you to random groups, here is what you must do -

- Go to the group in WhatsApp

- Select the subject of the group

- Tap on the phone number of the admin 

- If prompted, tap on Send Message

- A new chat with the admin will open up. Tap or click the phone number at the top

- Tap or click Block 

This will make sure that even if the person is not in your contact list, he or she will be blocked and won't be able to add you to groups.