Spam on WhatsApp can come from anywhere — unknown numbers, businesses, and even your contacts.
There was a time when using WhatsApp was peaceful – you opened the app, texted someone, and closed it without a care in the world. Things aren’t like that anymore. The platform has around 500 million users in India now, and with that growth has also arrived a rise in spam messages. You’re now forced to sift through rows of spammy chats to arrive at what you’re looking for. Make the mistake of sharing your phone number with a store and it wastes no time bombarding you with promos you may often have no interest in. But there are other forms of spam as well. Today, we check those along with some ways to shield yourself from spam for a less noisy chatting experience.
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How to identify spam on WhatsApp
Unknown numbers
The easiest way to identify spam on WhatsApp is to check whether the number texting you is in your contacts. If not, then more often than not, it’s spam. We wish WhatsApp provided an option to completely block texts from people not in contacts but that doesn’t appear to be in the cards right now.
Frequently forwarded messages
Sometimes, spam can arrive from people that are actually in your contacts. This could be in the form of rumours, viral messages, and fake news. Forwarded messages are especially common in larger group chats where people feel their message will get a wider reach. While WhatsApp has tried to curb the spread of such spam by imposing forwarding limits, spammers continue to be undeterred. Thankfully, a built-in feature lets you identify this type of spam easily, so you can simply ignore it.
You get a single arrow for forwarded texts and double for texts forwarded multiple times (Image credits: WhatsApp)
If a message has the “Forwarded many times” label at the top then it’s potentially spam and it’s important to ensure that the information in it is legit. Spammy forwards are often written in a sensationalised manner and many a time end with ‘Forwarded as received’ or ‘Please share widely.’ Unless you are able to verify that the info is legit, it’s best to break the chain and not forward such messages.
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Suspicious links
Given the popularity of the platform, it’s no surprise that WhatsApp is riddled with scammers. If for some reason you trust an unknown sender then the next red flag to look out for is suspicious links. It’s best not to open links from unknowns at all since they are often designed to steal your data – personal information, bank details, and login credentials.
Login requests
Genuine websites and apps generally don’t use WhatsApp for OTP verification, login requests, password recovery, and more. So if you do receive a suspicious security-related text on the platform asking for a login, it’s smarter to assume that it’s fraud. WhatsApp cannot be used for two-factor authentication (2FA).
Spam from businesses
Many people primarily use their phone numbers to log in to e-stores and other platforms now because of the convenience that it brings. While email verification requires you to manually copy-paste the OTP, SMS verification is usually automatic and logs you in quickly. That’s great, but it also means your phone number is now in the company’s hands, which they can use to send you promotions on WhatsApp. Companies that are more morally intact place a checkbox under the login input fields sometimes that you can uncheck to opt out of promos on WhatsApp. For others, the block button will be your best friend.
How to protect yourself from spam
Use the block button
Unfortunately, WhatsApp doesn’t seem to do anything behind the scenes to prevent spam from getting to you. It also doesn’t offer any option to block texts from people not in the contacts automatically. In such a case, your first action when you suspect spam should be hitting the block button. You can do so by opening the chat, tapping the three-dot menu on the top-right, hitting “More,” then “Block.”
The block button is usually your best friend for annoying spam (Express photo)
Report spam messages
It’s against WhatsApp regulations for a company to use WhatsApp Business to spam you or try to make unsolicited contact. When a company does spam you then you can report the company for it. You can do so by opening the chat, going to the profile, and scrolling down to “Report business.”
Leave frivolous group chats
Despite WhatsApp’s futile attempts at curbing the spread of rumours and fake news via forwards, often the biggest source of spam on one’s WhatsApp is group chats. For a better state of mind, you can leave unimportant groups by opening the chat, tapping the three-dot menu on the top-right, hitting “More,” then “Exit group.”
If people keep adding you to random groups then you can stop that by heading to WhatsApp’s settings > Account > Privacy > Groups. By default, anyone can add you to a group. You can change that by switching to “My contacts.”
