WhatsApp’s Biggest Privacy Upgrade Yet? Usernames Are Finally Coming

WhatsApp users will soon be able to start conversations without sharing their phone numbers, as the messaging giant prepares to introduce a long-awaited username feature for its billions of users worldwide.

The new system will allow people to connect simply by exchanging usernames, marking one of the biggest privacy changes in the platform’s history.

WhatsApp announced that the feature will be rolled out globally to its more than three billion users over the coming months.

Beginning Monday, users will be able to reserve their preferred usernames through the app, although adopting a username will remain optional.

According to the company, users will have the freedom to change or remove their usernames at any time.

Once the feature becomes fully operational, WhatsApp users will be able to message one another without revealing their phone numbers. Existing options to block or report unwanted contacts will remain in place.

Usernames will be limited to 35 characters and will come with minimal restrictions, although certain names associated with prominent public figures and celebrities will be protected from public use.

That means users are unlikely to find multiple accounts operating under names such as Donald Trump or other high-profile personalities.

The Meta-owned platform described the update as a major privacy enhancement designed to give users greater control over their identity on the app.

WhatsApp’s Head of Product, Alice Newton-Rex, said feedback from users showed that many people were uncomfortable sharing their personal phone numbers, especially in group conversations and online communities.

She said the new feature would “give users control over how they choose to show up” on WhatsApp.

The move follows a similar step taken by secure messaging platform, Signal, which introduced usernames in 2024.

Privacy experts, however, argue that the new feature does not solve all concerns surrounding WhatsApp’s handling of user data.

Carisa Veliz, a professor at Oxford University and author of Privacy is Power, described the development as useful but warned that WhatsApp still gathers significant metadata about users.

“It is a good feature, but even if it does offer more privacy, remember WhatsApp is not a privacy-friendly app overall,” she said.

“It collects much metadata about users for marketing purposes.

“We have to remember that WhatsApp is owned by Meta — one of the tech companies with the worst track records when it comes to privacy.”

WhatsApp maintains that it does not use the contents of private messages for advertising purposes, as chats are protected by end-to-end encryption that prevents even the company from reading them.

However, it still collects data such as who users communicate with and when those interactions occur to support advertising activities across Meta’s wider ecosystem.

When the username feature is fully rolled out, individual phone numbers will no longer be visible during conversations conducted through usernames.

WhatsApp also confirmed that there will be no public directory of usernames and that users will still need a valid phone number to create an account on the platform.

The app currently has a minimum age requirement of 13 years.

Messaging platforms are also expected to remain exempt from the United Kingdom’s planned social media restrictions for under-16s, which are scheduled to take effect next year.

The announcement comes shortly after WhatsApp revealed that Indian fintech entrepreneur, Kunal Shah, will take over leadership of the platform following the departure of Will Cathcart after seven years as head of the messaging service.