WhatsApp, the popular instant messaging app owned by Meta, has announced a new feature that allows users to silence incoming calls from unknown contacts. This update aims to provide users with greater control over their call notifications and reduce disturbances caused by unwanted spam calls. The feature is now available on the stable versions of WhatsApp for Android and iOS.
With the new feature, users will still receive incoming calls from unknown contacts or numbers not saved in their contact list. However, these calls will not ring, effectively silencing them and preventing any disruptions. Users will be able to see that they have missed a call from an unknown number through a notification.
Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg made the announcement last week, highlighting the company’s commitment to enhancing the user experience and addressing concerns related to unwanted calls. By empowering users to silence spam calls, WhatsApp aims to provide a more seamless and uninterrupted communication platform.
To enable the feature, users can follow these simple steps:
- Open the WhatsApp application on their smartphone.
- Navigate to the ‘Settings’ menu and select the ‘Privacy’ option.
- Within the ‘Privacy’ settings, choose the ‘Calls’ tab.
- Enable the toggle for ‘Silence Unknown Calls’.
Android users can access the ‘Settings’ menu by clicking on the three-dot icon, while iPhone users can find it by selecting the gear icon.
It’s important to note that users have the flexibility to disable the ‘Silence Unknown Calls’ toggle if they wish to continue receiving calls from contacts that are not saved in their phonebook, including spam calls. Additionally, users can choose to save these unknown numbers in their contact list to ensure they don’t miss important calls from known numbers that are not yet saved.
This update comes as WhatsApp continues to prioritize user privacy, security, and convenience. By providing the option to silence unwanted calls, WhatsApp aims to improve the overall user experience and create a more personalized and tailored communication environment.
With this new feature, WhatsApp users can have more control over their call notifications, ensuring that their conversations remain undisturbed by unwanted calls from unknown contacts.