Overview

• Meta has started rolling out ads in WhatsApp’s Updates tab, placing promotional content in the Status and Channels sections rather than private chats.
• Advertisers will target users based on limited data such as country, city, language settings and the channels they follow.
• Personal messages, calls and group conversations remain end-to-end encrypted and will not be used for ad targeting.
• WhatsApp is introducing channel subscriptions, allowing businesses and creators to charge users for exclusive updates.
• Privacy advocates, including the Electronic Frontier Foundation’s Lena Cohen, caution that targeted advertising on WhatsApp could undermine user privacy and trust.