- Privacy experts are raising concerns about the goal decision to bring ads to WhatsApp
- On Monday, June 16, 2025, WhatsApp announced that new advertisement functions are ready to land on the update tab
- In 2023, Meta denied the statements that WhatsApp was planning to add food ads on the platform
UPDATE: On June 18, 2025, after the publication, we update the copy to add additional comments and clarifications of WhatsApp.
After years of rumors, concerns and denials, it finally happened: WhatsApp is officially receiving advertisements.
On Monday, June 16, 2025, Meta announced that this new feature is implementing in the coming months. However, the great technological giant of technology is based on advertisements “in the most privacy oriented way, ensuring that their messages, calls and personal groups are not used to address these ads.
Needless to say, privacy experts do not buy it and ask worried users to look for alternatives.
“The introduction of ads could indicate a broader change in private messaging towards monitored and monitored communication,” warns Nordvpn technology, Marijus Briedis. “It is possible that their messages do not remain as private as you think.”
On the other hand, WhatsApp tells Techradar that “if you only use WhatsApp to chat with friends and loved ones, there is no change in their experience.”
WhatsApp ads – What we know so far
So, WhatsApp is receiving new ads, but how does this work?
Contrary to past rumors about possible food ads, a plan that Meta denied in 2023, WhatsApp ads are now ready to be blocked inside their update tab.
The update tab, which the company said it has 1.5 billion daily users, includes channels and states. The channels are a list of interest groups dedicated to those who can join, while the latter replicates the Instagram stories function. Both channels and states will obtain the AD function.
A new Promoted channels The function will soon begin to recommend new sponsored channels depending on their interests. A new Ads in state The option will also allow companies to promote their services and products with advertising directed among WhatsApp users.
WhatsApp promises that these new features have been built taking into account user privacy. Therefore, all personal messages, calls and states remain encrypted from end to extreme, which means that not even the supplier has access to this confidential information.
“To show ads in status or channels you might care about Center, We’ll Also use your ad preferences and info from across your goal Account, “Reads Whatsapp’s Official Announcement, Adding the Company Will” Never Sell Or Share Your Phone Number to Advertisers. “
What the privacy technology industry says
Despite these guarantees, the world of privacy is not exactly excited about the possibility of carrying hungry ads to an encrypted messaging application.
Nordvpn Briedis, today’s best Techradar VPN recommendation, fears that this movement can lead to a dangerous change in the private communications business.
He said: “When advertising enters a messaging application, it often marks the beginning of deeper data collection. Meta says that their chats are private, but its business model is based on data -based surveillance. It is not only about emerging windows; it is about protecting their privacy.”
Nordvpn is certainly not alone to adopt a strong posture against WhatsApp ads characteristics.
You may not remain as private as you think
Marijus Briedis, Nordvpn
As the AI expert, the technology and the privacy expert that Luiza Jarovsky pointed out, is unlikely that personalized ads are a characteristic that WhatsApp users would wish or enjoy seeing in a private application.
“O Meta is desperate for more sources of income, or they simply do not care. It is against common sense to introduce personalized ads in a private courier environment,” he wrote on a tweet, warning that “we will probably see hundreds of spooky examples.”
The Digital Group based in Austria Noyb has questioned the legality of said plan in the EU, under the GDPR and the provision of DMA consent, and now threatens the goal with a legal complaint.
“Without the consent given freely, linking data and showing personalized advertising is clearly illegal. Meta has already introduced an” Payment or Good “approach on Instagram and Facebook, without the Irish data protection authority or the EU commission that takes any effective action against him. We suspect that goal will do the same with WhatsApp,” said the president and lawyer of Noyb, Max Scherm.
Techradar approached WhatsApp to clarify and a spokesman said that most WhatsApp users do not see any difference.
“If you only use WhatsApp to chat with friends and loved ones, there is no change in your experience. We have been talking about our plans to build a business that does not interrupt your personal chats for years and we believe that the update tab is the right place for these new features to work,” WhatsApp said Techradar in a statement.
WhatsApp also states that Noyb’s statement is inaccurate. “Ignore the careful steps we have taken to protect the privacy of people’s messages and put ads in a separate tab. We are sure that our plan is in line with the legal requirements worldwide, including the EU.”
Use signal. We promise, without AI disorder, without surveillance ads, whatever does the rest of the industry. We lead we do not follow❤️ pic.twitter.com/11nakmbllwJune 17, 2025
However, experts suggest that worried users should start looking for more private alternatives.
“If you bother to be tracked, you have options,” Briedis said. “Privacy should not be treated as a luxury. It should be the baseline.”
If you are looking to get rid of WhatsApp, I recommend visiting the signal, the session or Threema.
The three messaging applications come with predetermined protection of end -to -end encryption in all its messages and calls, without ads. Crucially, contrary to WhatsApp, these services also encrypt metadata, promising a truly free and private experience.
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