About WhatsApp :
More than 2 billion people in over 180 countries use WhatsApp to stay in touch with friends and family, anytime and anywhere. WhatsApp is free and offers simple, secure, reliable messaging and calling, available on phones all over the world. WhatsApp started as an alternative to SMS. The product now supports sending and receiving a variety of media: text, photos, videos, documents, and location, as well as voice calls. Our messages and calls are secured with end-to-end encryption, meaning that no third party including WhatsApp can read or listen to them. Behind every product decision is our desire to let people communicate anywhere in the world without barriers.
WhatsApp Team : WhatsApp was founded by Jan Koum and Brian Acton who had previously spent 20 years combined at Yahoo. WhatsApp joined Facebook in 2014, but continues to operate as a separate app with a laser focus on building a messaging service that works fast and reliably anywhere in the world.
WhatsApp Download
DOWNLOAD WHATSAPP FOR PHONES
Visit whatsapp.com/dl on your mobile phone to install.
By installing WhatsApp, you agree to our Terms & Privacy Policy.
DOWNLOAD WHATSAPP FOR WINDOWS PC
By clicking the Download button, you agree to our Terms & Privacy Policy.
DOWNLOAD WHATSAPP FOR MAC
WhatsApp Web : A browser based version of WhatsApp. WhatsApp Web and WhatsApp Desktop are computer based extensions of the WhatsApp account on your phone. The messages you send and receive are fully synced between your phone and your computer, and you can see all messages on both devices. WhatsApp Web for Desktop Browser.
WhatsApp Business App :
WhatsApp Business is a free to download app that was built with the small business owner in mind. Create a catalog to showcase your products and services. Connect with your customers easily by using tools to automate, sort and quickly respond to messages.
WhatsApp can also help medium and large businesses provide customer support and deliver important notifications to customers. Learn more about WhatsApp Business API.
DOWNLOAD WHATSAPP BUSINESS APP FOR YOUR PHONE
How to protect WhatsApp Account : Against WhatsApp Scams
What if someone's account is stolen in WhatsApp?
You should never share your WhatsApp SMS verification code with others, not even friends or family. If you're tricked into sharing your code and lose access to your WhatsApp account, read the instructions below to recover your account.
If you suspect someone else is using your WhatsApp account, you should notify family and friends as this individual could impersonate you in chats and groups. Please note, WhatsApp is end-to-end encrypted and messages are stored on your device, so someone accessing your account on another device can't read your past conversations.
Resources
How to recover my WhatsApp account
Sign into WhatsApp with your phone number and verify your phone number by entering the 6-digit code you receive via SMS. Learn more about verifying your phone number in our Help Center: Android | iPhone.
Once you enter the 6-digit SMS code, the individual using your account is automatically logged out.
You might also be asked to provide a two-step verification code. If you don't know this code, the individual using your account might have enabled two-step verification. You must wait 7 days before you can sign in without the two-step verification code. Regardless of whether you know this verification code, the other individual was logged out of your account once you entered the 6-digit SMS code. Learn more about two-step verification in this article.
Note
How to stay safe on WhatsApp
The safety and security of you and your messages matter to us. We want you to know about the tools and features we've designed to help you stay safe while using WhatsApp. We also provide some links to other resources that can help you generally stay safe online.
Terms of Service
One way we help you stay safe on WhatsApp is through our Terms of Service. Our Terms of Service set forth the activities on WhatsApp that are prohibited. For instance, submitting content (in the status, profile photos or messages) that's illegal, obscene, defamatory, threatening, intimidating, harassing, hateful, racially, or ethnically offensive, or instigates or encourages conduct that would be illegal, or otherwise inappropriate violates our Terms of Service. We'll ban a user if we believe that user is violating our Terms of Service.
For more information about examples of activities that violate our Terms of Service, please review the “Acceptable Use of Our Services” section of our Terms of Service.
WhatsApp Tools
On WhatsApp, we've created some basic controls that you can adjust as you see fit to help you protect yourself:
Control who sees your information
You can set your last seen, profile photo and/or status to the following options:
Everyone: Your last seen, profile photo and/or status will be available to all WhatsApp users.
My Contacts: Your last seen, profile photo and/or status will be available to your contacts from your address book only.
Nobody: Your last seen, profile photo and/or status won't be available to anyone.
If you turn off Read receipts, you won't send read receipts. You also won't be able to see other users' read receipts.
Note: Read Receipts are always sent for group chats, even if you turn off the option in your privacy settings.
Learn about privacy settings on: Android | iPhone
Control what you see and with whom you interact
You can block specific contacts from interacting with you via WhatsApp. For more information on how to block/unblock a contact and to learn what happens when you block a contact, please review these articles.
Control what you share
You can also decide what to share with your contacts on WhatsApp, and we encourage you to think carefully before you decide to share something. Ask yourself: would you want others to see what you've sent?
Please be advised that we don't retain messages after they've been delivered, in the ordinary course of providing our service. Once a message is delivered over WhatsApp, to help ensure the safety, confidentiality and security of the messages you send we don't store the message.
However, when you share a chat, photo, video, file or voice message with someone else on WhatsApp, they'll have a copy of these messages. They'll have the ability to re-share these messages with others on and off WhatsApp.
WhatsApp also has a location feature that you can use to share your then-current location via a WhatsApp message. You should only share your location with people you trust.
Advanced safety and security features
Report issues to WhatsApp
You can send reports to WhatsApp by contacting us from inside the app.
Please provide as much information as possible.
Important : If you feel that you or someone else is in emotional or physical danger, please contact your local law enforcement authorities. They're better able to help in these cases.
We encourage you to report problematic content to us. Please keep in mind that to help ensure the safety, confidentiality and security of your messages, we generally don't have the contents of messages available to us, which limits our ability to verify the report and take action.
When needed, you can take a screenshot of the content and share it, along with any available contact info, with appropriate law enforcement authorities.
Report
When you receive a message from an unknown number for the first time, you'll have the option to report the number directly inside the chat.
You can also report a contact or a group from their profile information using the following steps:
Once reported, WhatsApp receives the most recent messages sent to you by a reported user or group, as well as information on your recent interactions with the reported user.
Banning
We may ban accounts if we believe the account activity is in violation of our Terms of Service. Per our Terms of Service, we may retain the right to ban you without notification. Please be aware that a user report of conduct in violation of our Terms of Service won't necessarily result in us banning the user or otherwise taking action against the user.
Please review the “Acceptable Use of Our Services” section of our Terms of Service carefully to learn more about the appropriate uses of WhatsApp and the activities that violate our Terms of Service.
Spam and Hoaxes
We work diligently to reduce any spam messages that come through our system. Creating a safe space for users to communicate with one another is a priority. However, just like regular SMS or phone calls, it's possible for other WhatsApp users who have your phone number to contact you. So, we want to help you identify and handle spam and hoax messages.
Spam and hoax messages may or may not come from one of your contacts. These types of messages spread false information and are designed to deceive you and prompt you to act in a certain way. If a message looks suspicious or sounds too good to be true, don't tap on it, share it or forward it.
Watch out for messages that:
Include misspellings or grammatical mistakes
What to do to be safe on WhatsApp
If you're receiving the message from an unknown number, you'll be given the option to report the number to WhatsApp directly from the app.
If you've received spam from a contact, delete the message and don't click on any links or provide personal information. Tell the contact that the message they sent includes spam and point them to this WhatsApp safety page.
You can also send reports to WhatsApp by contacting us from inside the app.
Additional resources
If you feel you or anyone else is in immediate danger, please contact your local emergency services.
If you receive content from someone who wishes to hurt themselves, and you're concerned for their safety, please contact your local emergency services or a suicide prevention hotline.
If you receive or encounter content indicating abuse or exploitation of a child, please contact the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children (NCMEC).
WhatsApp Plus, GB WhatsApp and other third-party versions.
WhatsApp has announced through an FAQ post that it is temporarily banning accounts that use third-party versions of the instant messaging app, such as WhatsApp Plus or GB WhatsApp.
If you received an in-app message stating your account is “Temporarily banned” this means that you're likely using an unsupported version of WhatsApp instead of the official WhatsApp app. If you don't switch to the official app after being temporarily banned, your account might be permanently banned from using WhatsApp.
Unsupported apps, such as WhatsApp Plus, GB WhatsApp, or apps that claim to move your WhatsApp chats between phones, are altered versions of WhatsApp. These unofficial apps are developed by third parties and violate our Terms of Service. WhatsApp doesn't support these third-party apps because we can't validate their security practices.
How to switch to the official WhatsApp app
You might need to backup your chat history before moving to the official WhatsApp app. The name of the unsupported app you're using determines whether you need to transfer your chat history. Locate the name of the app by tapping More Options > Settings > Help > App info. Follow the steps below based on the name of the app: WhatsApp Plus or GB WhatsApp.
If you're using an app other than WhatsApp Plus or GB WhatsApp, we recommend saving your chat history before downloading the official WhatsApp app.
We recommend following the steps below to save and transfer your chat history. Failure to follow these steps could result in lost chat history. Please note that we can't guarantee this will be a successful chat history transfer because WhatsApp doesn't support unofficial apps.
Resources