How do users manage their privacy settings related to their phone number on WhatsApp?

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As of May 20, 2025, WhatsApp users have limited direct control over the visibility of their phone number itself within the application. The platform's architecture inherently relies on phone numbers as the primary identifier for accounts. This means that when you communicate with another WhatsApp user, they will see your phone number, regardless of whether they have saved you as a contact or not.

However, WhatsApp provides several other privacy settings that indirectly help users manage who can associate their phone number with other visible information and who can contact them. Here's how users manage these related privacy aspects:

1. Profile Information Visibility (Indirectly Linked to Phone Number):

Users can control who sees their:

Profile Photo: Options include "Everyone," "My Contacts," "My Contacts Except…," and "Nobody."
About: Similar options as the profile photo.
Last Seen & Online: Users can choose who sees their last mexico whatsapp number data seen status and whether they are currently online ("Everyone," "My Contacts," "My Contacts Except…," "Nobody," or "Same as Last Seen").
Status: Users can select specific contacts to share their status updates with ("My Contacts," "My Contacts Except…," or "Only share with…").
By limiting the visibility of this information to "My Contacts" or specific individuals, users can control who can easily associate their profile details with their phone number. However, if you message someone, your number will still be visible to them.

2. Controlling Who Can Contact You:

Groups: Users can manage who can add them to groups ("Everyone," "My Contacts," "My Contacts Except…"). This prevents being added to unwanted groups where your phone number would be visible to all group members.
Blocking: Users can block specific contacts to prevent them from sending messages or calling them. This is a reactive measure for dealing with unwanted contact.
Silencing Unknown Callers: This feature allows users to silence calls from numbers that are not saved in their contacts, helping to avoid potential spam or unwanted calls.
3. Enhancing Account Security (Protecting Your Account Linked to Your Number):

Two-Step Verification: Enabling two-step verification adds an extra layer of security by requiring a PIN when registering your phone number on a new device. This helps prevent unauthorized access to your account, even if someone gains access to your SIM card.
App Lock (Fingerprint/Face ID): WhatsApp allows users to lock the app using their device's biometric authentication, preventing unauthorized access to their chats and potentially their contact list.
Important Considerations:

Phone Number as Core Identifier: It's crucial to reiterate that WhatsApp's fundamental design uses the phone number as the primary way to identify users. There is no built-in feature to hide your phone number from people you are actively communicating with.
Business Interactions: When interacting with businesses via the WhatsApp Business API, in some initial interactions initiated through ads, your number might be hidden by default. However, you can choose to share it with the business if you wish to continue the conversation. Once shared, you cannot unshare it within that specific interaction.
Third-Party Solutions: Be wary of unofficial third-party apps or methods claiming to hide your phone number on WhatsApp, as these can compromise your security and violate WhatsApp's Terms of Service.
In conclusion, while users cannot directly hide their phone number on WhatsApp from those they communicate with, they utilize the available privacy settings to manage the visibility of their associated profile information and control who can initiate contact with them, thereby indirectly managing their privacy related to their phone number. For complete privacy from specific individuals, blocking remains the primary tool.