WhatsApp is reportedly developing a new privacy feature that will give users greater control over who can view their phone numbers during calls and chats.

The upcoming update is expected to build on the platform’s Username feature, which allows people to connect and communicate without necessarily sharing their mobile numbers.

Introduced in June, the Username feature was designed to strengthen user privacy by reducing the need to exchange personal phone numbers. Although its rollout is still limited, WhatsApp is now reportedly working on another layer of privacy protection.

Four Options for Phone Number Visibility

According to WhatsApp feature tracker WABetaInfo, the new functionality was spotted in WhatsApp beta for Android version 2.26.45.1.

The feature is expected to offer four visibility settings, allowing users to choose who can see their phone numbers:

• Everyone: Anyone can view the phone number.
• My Contacts: Only saved contacts can see it.
• My Contacts Except…: Users can exclude selected contacts.
• Nobody: The phone number remains hidden from everyone.

Username Required to Access the Feature

The additional privacy control will reportedly be available only to users who have created a WhatsApp username.

Users whose phone numbers are already known to someone will not be able to prevent that person from seeing the number in existing interactions, according to the reported details.

WhatsApp currently hides phone numbers in certain interactions involving usernames. Under the proposed update, the default visibility setting will reportedly be ‘Nobody’, meaning users will not need to manually change their preferences to keep their numbers private.

However, those who use WhatsApp for business or other purposes can reportedly adjust the settings to make their numbers visible to selected audiences.

When Will the Feature Arrive ?

The phone number visibility feature is still under development and has not yet been made available to beta testers.

WhatsApp is expected to introduce it through a future beta update before considering a wider public rollout.

For now, users will have to wait for an official announcement from the Meta-owned messaging platform.