However, knowing the number of the person with whom you want to chat is mandatory. By default, WhatsApp sets your privacy settings to allow: Any user to see your last seen, profile photo, about information, and read receipts.
#Whatsapp privacy update
This means only the sender and the person receiving it can read them. After a WhatsApp update was issued in May 2021, a widely circulated warning urged users to double-check their privacy settings, as the app had supposedly reverted to a setting that allowed any.