WhatsApp’s guide to safe and private messaging - All you need to know

In a bid to promote safer and responsible use of technology, Safer Internet Day is observed every year. This time, it is being observed today i.e. February 7. “Want to talk about it? Making space for conversations about life online”, is the theme of this year's Safer Internet Day. As we observe the day today, Meta-owned WhatsApp has released a guide to safe and private messaging. 

As we spend more and more time online or on our phones, the user guide by WhatsApp aims to help users in spotting scams and misinformation and has details about how to safeguard personal information. Let's quickly check out the details:

Keep personal details private

Protecting our personal information is essential when using the internet. There are certain things that one should keep in mind while transacting within the online world. The most important one is to avoid sharing sensitive information such as your address, phone number, passwords, credit or debit card numbers, and bank account information. 

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Users also have control over their personal details such as - Profile Photo, Last Seen, Online status, About, Status, and who sees it. One can select from the options like - everyone, contacts only, select contacts, or no one. 

"You can also control your online presence by selecting who can and can’t see when you’re online, for the times you want to keep your online presence private," the instant messaging app said. 

Add a layer of security to safeguard your account

WhatsApp let users add an extra layer of security to their accounts. This can be done by enabling the Two-Step Verification feature. This will require entering a six-digit PIN when resetting and verifying your WhatsApp account. This feature is extremely helpful in case a SIM card gets stolen or if the phone is compromised. 

Break the forward chain

In order to encourage users to think before forwarding a message, WhatsApp has introduced a label for all forwarded messages. The Meta-owned messaging app limits the number of times you can forward messages.

"Recently WhatsApp has also introduced new group forwarding limits where messages that have the "forwarded label" can only be forwarded to one group at a time, rather than five. So, if you are not sure of the source of a message, don’t forward it," it said.

Spot scams and report them

The internet is prone to spam messages, cyber threats and fraud. Messages offering jobs, giving cash prizes or fully sponsored trips often include links to a website or request access to personal information with disguised malware. 

In order to deal with it, WhatsApp provides a simple way for users to take action. Users simply have to long-press the message to ‘block and report’ the account to WhatsApp. 

Fake News? Fact-check it

In India, there are 10 independent fact-checking organizations on WhatsApp that help users to identify, review, and verify the information and help prevent the spread of misinformation on its platform.