Asking someone to contact you via WhatsApp required, until now, sharing your phone number. But this will change: the platform will now allow the use of a username.
Starting this Monday (29), WhatsApp begins the username reservation phase. It is a unique identification of each person on the network, as is already the case on Instagram. It doesn’t have to be the person’s name.
After the reservation phase, people will be able to add each other by username. To have a WhatsApp account, it will continue to be mandatory to have an active phone line. However, for interactions within the network, it will be possible to share only the username. The platform itself will notify you when the feature starts working.
“The phone number is something personal and linked to other issues in life. The username is something unique. Sometimes, someone wants to join a group, but doesn’t necessarily want to share their number. That’s what the username is for”, says Alice Newton-Rex, vice president of Product at WhatsApp, in conversation with journalists.
The big advantage is the issue of privacy. You no longer need to share your phone number around. According to the company, it will be possible to change the username, but there will be some frequency controls for change. For those who prefer to share their phone number, this will continue to be possible.
Another protection relates to who can contact you. Similar to what happens with the phone number, there are settings that allow you to limit contact from strangers. WhatsApp has two options:
Everyone: Anyone with your username can search for it and start a conversation.
People who know my key: in addition to their username, people need to know their key (sequence of four numbers that WhatsApp generates).
Username can be important for small businesses. According to WhatsApp, having the same ID as Instagram, for example, can make it easier for business owners to be found on the messaging platform.
Having a username is nothing new for Telegram users. The messaging platform has had the functionality for over ten years. When the feature was launched in 2014, the company drew attention to the fact that it could contact people without having to give out their phone number.
HOW TO MAKE A RESERVATION
The option will be available by going to Settings > Account > Username.
The feature will be implemented gradually, and WhatsApp guarantees that the names of public people will be protected from being reserved by third parties. This includes, for example, celebrities and politicians.
During the booking process, the user can try to get the same Instagram and Facebook name. According to WhatsApp, already having your name on one of Meta’s networks can count in favor of a person’s choice, if another opts for a similar identification. The platform says that to have this prioritization it is necessary to add WhatsApp to the Meta Account Center – a kind of “integration” between accounts.
Source: www.noticiasaominuto.com.br
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