WhatsApp now lets you control who can add you to a group

WhatsApp today announced it is rolling out changes to its messaging app to give users more control over how they engage with groups, thereby addressing one of the most pronounced privacy issues on the platform.

The Facebook-owned service said users will now have an option to control who can add them to groups.

Users can choose between Nobody, My Contacts (people whose phone numbers they have saved in their phone), and Everyone — assuming they don’t have any reservations about random people adding them to different groups.

To add someone who has restricted access, users will be required to send a private message to the person with an invite link. That individual can then decide whether they wish to join the group through the invite link, which will be active for 72 hours.

The new feature is available in Settings > Account > Privacy > Groups, WhatsApp said, adding that it is beginning to roll the option out to some users starting today. The feature will roll out to users around the world in the coming weeks, the company added, but they will need the most updated version of WhatsApp to access it.

The rollout of this new option comes as a growing number of users have expressed frustration over the spamming and unwanted messages they have to deal with after people add them to groups without their consent.

:story: VentureBeat