Overview

• Advertisements will be confined to the Updates tab and tailored using basic user data such as location, language, followed channels and ad interactions.
• WhatsApp affirms that personal messages, calls and statuses remain end-to-end encrypted and that phone numbers will not be sold or shared with advertisers.
• Channel operators and businesses can now pay to promote their channels and charge users monthly fees for exclusive content, with WhatsApp taking a commission.
• The phased global rollout begins over the coming months, and users who stick to personal chats will not see any ads.
• Privacy experts warn that even limited metadata collection for ad targeting can enable user reidentification and raise broader data‐privacy risks.