Many users are aware of the online status under your name, which indicates if you are online and engaged on the app. However, it’s less well known you can also hide your online activity if you don’t want to be annoyed by others or desire to use WhatsApp in private.
And, happily, changing or hiding that online status is a straightforward process that also hides the “last seen” status, which generally notifies those who know about the last time you utilized the app.
Like most modifications to WhatsApp settings, you’ll need to go to your Settings menus and then select what you would like to alter or change from the various options. Then you just complete the other steps, which are as follows:
Step by Step for Android
- Select ‘More Options’ from the three lines at the highest right of the screen
- Select Settings
- Select Privacy, then Last Seen and Online
- Choose Nobody for ‘who has access to my last seen’ and Nobody for ‘who can know when I’m online’. The same as before.
Step by Step for iPhone
- Navigate to Settings and then to Privacy
- Select Last Seen
- Choose Nobody under ‘who can view my last seen’ and Same last time seen under ‘who can see whenever I’m online’
- There are more options for preventing contact information your online status. Go to the Settings the menu, then Account, and finally Privacy
- Instead of heading to Last Seen, go to Status, then My contacts, except… and select the contacts you don’t want to see your status.
Using your phone’s Airplane mode is another way to avoid having your online activity and last seen displayed on WhatsApp. Turn on Airplane mode, then open WhatsApp and select the contact you wish to message. Write then send the email, which will not be delivered but will remain in the condition of failure to deliver.
Close the app and then turn off Airplane mode. When your mobile data or web connection is restored, the message will be delivered without disclosing what you’re doing online or last saw.
