New WhatsApp update lets strangers see your private status updates [U: Official statement]

Update 20/05/26 – 08:40 pm (IST): In a statement, a WhatsApp spokesperson told us that this is only a small test. They also confirmed that if the status privacy is set to contacts only, unsaved numbers won’t see your status.

Here’s their full statement:

Your status privacy hasn’t changed – if it’s set to be visible only to your contacts, they’re the only ones who can see it.

We’re running a small test where people can share their Status with people they’ve saved in their contacts, including those who haven’t saved them yet.

Original article published on May 14, 2026, follows:

WhatsApp has introduced a significant change to the Status feature; it’s now noticeable in the stable build, after appearing in beta last month.

Users report seeing Status updates from accounts that they haven’t saved as contacts. This shift effectively turns the once-private Status tab into a public feed, which a lot of users received negatively.

Multiple posts across X highlight the issue with this. The real creep factor is that this works both ways. If you recently messaged a delivery driver or a one-time client, they can now view your personal updates, and you’ll see theirs even if neither of you has saved the other’s contact info.

I’ve checked for this change myself, but I don’t see it yet on the latest version of WhatsApp on iOS. “Status settings” within the app still gives me the usual menu containing “My Contacts,” “My contacts except,” and “Only share with.”

I’ve also tried to view Statuses from unknown numbers, and I wasn’t able to. Conversely, checking for my own status with an alt account also doesn’t work if I don’t have the number saved. Furthermore, I also deleted someone’s contact (that I had saved); the Status immediately disappeared, and I could not view it.

This situation suggests that WhatsApp might still be A/B testing, or it’s a phased rollout that hasn’t reached all users yet. It was previously in beta. Whoever got the feature was notified within the app, as shared by @SaadhJawwadh on X. You can view the image below.

This rollout has people annoyed, and many are complaining about privacy issues. Meta’s push to turn WhatsApp into a more “social media-like” app from a regular conversational tool has been criticized. Instead of paying attention to bugs on the app, making such changes without notifying users doesn’t make sense.

The most alarming report suggests that the update might even bypass “Restricted” contact lists, which is clearly a critical privacy failure that WhatsApp needs to address immediately if true.

There are some quick fixes you can try if you don’t want everyone to see your Status, such as restricting the audience settings to “My contacts.”

If there’s sufficient negative reception, there’s a chance WhatsApp could roll this back, and we’ll update the article if there are any further developments.

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