Protect Your Business Series: How to Secure Information (Yours and Your Clients') on WhatsApp Business

WhatsApp Business makes it easy for small businesses to communicate with customers, answer questions, and build stronger relationships. But because it often contains customer conversations, contact details, and business information, it can also create privacy and security risks if not configured correctly.

Learn how to use WhatsApp Business securely, comply with privacy regulations, adjust important security settings, and protect both your business and your customers.

Key takeaways

• WhatsApp Business can help small businesses communicate with customers more efficiently.
• Businesses that collect customer data through WhatsApp Business may need to comply with GDPR and other privacy regulations.
• Customer consent and transparency are essential when using WhatsApp Business for business communications.
• Privacy settings such as profile visibility, group permissions, disappearing messages, and call controls should be reviewed and adjusted.
• Limiting data collection reduces privacy risks and potential compliance issues.
• Monitoring for data breaches and account exposure can help protect business information and customer trust.

Why businesses use WhatsApp Business

WhatsApp Business is free for small businesses and offers an easy way to stay connected with customers. Since many people already use WhatsApp every day, it allows businesses to communicate through a platform customers are comfortable with. Larger companies can also connect WhatsApp to their existing tools and systems through the WhatsApp Business API.

Some of the benefits include:

• Reaching customers on a platform they already use and trust
• Answering questions quickly and providing convenient customer support
• Building stronger relationships with customers
• Increasing brand visibility and customer engagement
• Saving time with automated messages and quick replies
• Reducing communication costs while improving efficiency

What small businesses should know before using WhatsApp Business

WhatsApp Business can be an excellent tool for customer communication, but there are a few important things to understand before you set up an account.

·If you already use WhatsApp Messenger, you can transfer your chat history and media to WhatsApp Business. However, once transferred, your chat history cannot be moved back to the regular WhatsApp app.

·You can use both WhatsApp Messenger and WhatsApp Business on the same device, but each app must be connected to a different phone number.

·Depending on how you use the platform, your business may need to comply with privacy regulations such as the GDPR and other data protection laws.

·Customer conversations may contain personal or sensitive information, making it important to think carefully about privacy, access controls, and data handling practices.

·Like any business communication platform, WhatsApp Business can become a target for phishing attacks, account takeovers, and data breaches if proper security measures are not in place.

To set up the WhatsApp Business app: 

1.    Download the WhatsApp Business app from the Google Play Store.

2.    Verify your business phone number.

3.    Restore your account from a backup, if you wish.

4.    Set your business name.

5.    Build your profile. Tap More options > Settings > your business name.

How to use WhatsApp Business in a GDPR-compliant way

One of the first steps to using WhatsApp Business compliantly is obtaining explicit customer consent, or opt-in, in advance. Businesses should explain to customers how their data will be used and stored and be transparent in their interactions.

Recent updates to WhatsApp's privacy policy allow Meta, WhatsApp's parent company, to share more data across its platforms to enhance service and deliver personalized content. For example, changes to its privacy policy in 2021 mean Meta will share more data between Facebook and WhatsApp to improve its products and services, personalize ads and content, and integrate with other Facebook products. Data that may be shared includes phone numbers, contacts, profile information, device details, IP, location, and usage data.

Businesses integrating such features must inform their clients about these practices and obtain their consent, as failing to do so may expose them to regulatory risks.

If your business processes the personal data of EU customers, you must comply with GDPR requirements like having a legitimate purpose, a lawful basis, and a valid contract for data processing.

Additionally, in certain industries, companies must adhere not only to GDPR but also to specific regulatory requirements relevant to their sector. For example, financial institutions often face strict standards for secure communication that may conflict with WhatsApp's end-to-end encryption policies. To comply with regulations, these organizations typically need centralized oversight, secure storage, and a review of all business communications, rather than relying on personal devices.

Related: 8 Ways to Protect Your Very Small Business Reputation Online

Best practices for protecting customer data on WhatsApp Business

Here are a few straightforward ways to make WhatsApp Business a secure tool for your business:

1. Conduct a Data Protection Impact Assessment (DPIA) to identify potential risks associated with using WhatsApp Business. This assessment helps you identify privacy concerns early and implement measures to protect customer data.

2. Be transparent with your customers by explaining what data you collect, why you need it, how it will be used, and who may have access to it. Ideally, provide this information before or as you gather data, ensuring that it is simple and clear.

3. Obtain explicit permission from your clients, especially if you plan to use their data beyond messaging, such as for marketing or analytics purposes.

4. Make it easy for your clients to withdraw consent or opt out whenever they wish.

5. Limit data collection to what is necessary and directly relevant to your business needs to minimize exposure.

6.    Regularly review your data handling practices, especially when WhatsApp updates its policies or terms of service, and make sure your privacy policies reflect how you use it.

Related: How to Check If Your Business Is Affected by a Breach (And What to Do if It Is)

WhatsApp Business privacy settings Every business should change

When you first start using WhatsApp Business, default privacy settings are quite open. For instance, your profile photo, last seen status, and read receipts are visible to anyone on WhatsApp. By default, your contacts can view your status updates and "about" information, while unknown callers can contact you, and anyone can add you to groups. But if this level of exposure isn't right for your business, you can easily adjust these settings.

1. Adjust Who Can See Your Last Seen, Profile Photo, and About Info

Limit who can view your details like your last seen status, profile photo, and about information.

• How to Do It:

Go to Settings > Privacy, select Last Seen, Profile Photo, or About, then choose from:

• Everyone (all users)
• My Contacts (only your saved contacts)
• My Contacts Except... (exclude specific contacts)
• Nobody (keep it hidden from everyone)

Note: If you don't share your last seen or online, you can't see other users' last seen or online. If you select Everyone in settings for last seen or online, only those you've called and messaged before or saved as a contact can see your last seen and online.

2.      Control Read Receipts

Decide if you want others to know you've read their messages.

• How to Do It: Go to Settings > Privacy > Read Receipts. Toggle off to hide your own read receipts (note: this also hides others' read receipts from you, except in group chats).

Note: If you turn off read receipts, you can't see read receipts from other users. Read receipts are always sent for group chats. If a contact turns off read receipts, you can't see if they've viewed your status updates.

3.      Enable Disappearing Messages by Default

Set messages to disappear automatically to protect sensitive information.

• How to Do It: Go to Settings > Privacy > Disappearing Messages and set your default message timer to make messages disappear after a certain time frame.

4.      Silence Unknown Callers

Block calls from unknown numbers to prevent unsolicited contacts.

• How to Do It: Go to Settings > Privacy > Calls and enable Silence Unknown Callers.

5.      Update Your Group Privacy Settings

Decide who can add you to groups to avoid being added by people outside your contacts.

• How to Do It:

Go to Settings > Privacy > Groups, then select:

• Everyone (any user can add you)
• My Contacts (only contacts can add you)
• My Contacts Except... (exclude specific contacts from adding you)

6.      Control Who Can See Your Status Updates

Choose who can view your status updates.

• How to Do It: Go to Settings > Privacy > Status, and select:
  • My Contacts (all saved contacts)
  • My Contacts Except... (exclude certain contacts)
  • Only Share With... (choose specific contacts to share with)

7.      Manage Live Location Sharing

Turn off live location sharing for added privacy.

• How to Do It: Go to Settings > Privacy > Live Location and toggle off the feature for any existing chats.

8. Change Group Privacy Settings

WhatsApp has always allowed anyone with your phone number to message you or add you to a group, just like how anyone can send you an SMS message or email if they have your contact information. By default, your group privacy settings are set to Everyone.

For additional privacy, you can control who can add you to a group:

Open Settings in WhatsApp.

1. Select Privacy > Groups.
2. Choose one of the following options:
   • Everyone: Anyone, including people outside your contacts, can add you to groups.
   • My Contacts: Only saved contacts can add you to groups without approval. If someone not in your contacts tries, they'll receive a prompt to send you a private group invite through chat.
   • My Contacts Except...: Only your contacts, except those you specifically exclude, can add you. Excluded contacts who try to add you will be prompted to send an invitation through individual chat.

Note:

• Changes to group privacy settings can only be made on the mobile app (they sync with WhatsApp Web and Desktop).
• This setting doesn't apply to community Announcements; if you're part of a community, you'll always be added to its Announcements.

Related:

How to Keep Your Business Instagram Account Safe

How to Secure Your Facebook Business Page From Hackers

How to protect your business on WhatsApp Business

One tool that's really helpful for protecting your business reputation, data digital identity is Business Assets Exposure, included in Bitdefender Ultimate Small Business Security.

Business Assets Exposure keeps an eye on your important business info like your email, credit cards, and social media accounts. If any of this information gets caught up in a data breach, you'll get a notification. Once you've set it up, you can check if you, your employees, or your business have been part of any data leaks. You'll learn about the breach, the service it happened on, and what kind of information was exposed (like your email or username). Hackers look for this information to try to take control of your social media accounts.

Bitdefender Ultimate Small Business Security provides comprehensive protection specifically tailored for small businesses which are present on social media and use a variety of apps for their daily operations. It includes features like phishing and email protection to block scams before they reach your inbox, malware defense for Windows PCs, Macs, iPhones, Android phones, and Windows servers, and a password manager to create and secure strong passwords, unlimited VPN traffic and Scam Copilot, which utilizes AI to help your team identify scams and enhance their cybersecurity skills.

Check out plans here.

FAQs

Is WhatsApp Business safe for small businesses?

Yes, WhatsApp Business can be safe when used properly. Businesses should review privacy settings, secure devices with strong passwords and multi-factor authentication, limit data collection, and comply with applicable privacy regulations.

Does WhatsApp Business comply with GDPR?

WhatsApp Business can be used in a GDPR-compliant manner, but compliance remains the responsibility of the business. Companies must obtain customer consent when required, explain how data is used, and ensure they have a lawful basis for processing personal data.

What information does WhatsApp Business collect?

WhatsApp Business may collect information such as phone numbers, profile information, device details, usage data, IP addresses, and business communication data. Businesses should review WhatsApp's latest privacy policies and inform customers accordingly.

What are the biggest security risks of WhatsApp Business?

Common risks include account takeover attacks, phishing scams, unauthorized access to customer conversations, data breaches, and accidental sharing of sensitive customer information.

How can I make WhatsApp Business more private?

You can improve privacy by limiting who can see your profile photo, last seen status, and business information, enabling disappearing messages, controlling group invitations, silencing unknown callers, and reviewing location-sharing settings.

Can WhatsApp Business be hacked?

Like any online account, WhatsApp Business can be targeted by hackers through phishing, stolen verification codes, malware, weak passwords, or compromised devices. Enabling two-step verification and using security software can help reduce the risk.

Should I use WhatsApp Business for customer service?

For many small businesses, WhatsApp Business is an effective customer service tool because it allows fast communication and automation features. However, businesses should have clear privacy practices and avoid sharing sensitive information through chat whenever possible.

How do I protect customer data on WhatsApp Business?

Protect customer data by collecting only necessary information, obtaining consent where required, restricting access to business accounts, regularly reviewing privacy settings, and monitoring for data breaches or account exposure.