WhatsApp has a chat moderation feature that lets you report suspicious conversations. This feature aims to reduce spam as well as block hate speech and misinformation on the platform. While the messaging app allows users to report contacts for a long time, WhatsApp now offers the ability to report individual messages as well. We’ve compiled a detailed guide on how to report WhatsApp messages so you can better see how to deal with spam, abuse or misinformation.
Report Messages on WhatsApp: A Step-by-Step Guide (2021)
Firstly mottled by the tipper WABetaInfo, WhatsApp is currently testing the option to report individual messages in beta. WhatsApp beta is live in 2.21.19.15 and newer versions. If you’re not using the beta version, we’ve also included steps to report a person who has shared the last five messages with WhatsApp. So without further ado, let’s jump right in!
Why You Should Report WhatsApp Messages?
Report a WhatsApp message helps avoid unwanted interactions on the platform. You can report a message if it is problematic in nature or if it is a spam message. When you submit a complaint, WhatsApp moderators review it and may even ban the user if they violate the company’s Terms of Service.
Also, contrary to recent reports, reporting a spam message or contact does not weaken WhatsApp’s end-to-end encryption (E2EE) implementation. The messaging app sends a copy of the last five messages from the person you’re reporting. It does not share the entire chat history and does not break the end-to-end encryption in any way.
How to Report Individual WhatsApp Messages
1. Open the conversation that contains a potentially harmful or spammy message. Here, long press the message and tap the three-dot menu icon in the upper right corner to view more settings.
2nd. Press the new ‘Report’ option to go further. It’s worth noting that the report option will only appear when you select a single message. Reporting multiple messages is currently not supported, but there is a workaround in the next section.
3. Now a popup will appear clarify that the message will be forwarded to WhatsApp, but rest assured, it will not notify the person in question. Press the ‘Report’ button to flag the potentially harmful message. You can also choose to block the contact from the right of this screen by selecting the ‘Block contact’ checkbox.
How to Report a WhatsApp View Once Photo or Video
WhatsApp has recently introduced an option to send lost photos and videos called View Once to users worldwide. These photos and videos self-destruct when you view the content. Now, if someone shares potentially sensitive or harmful content using View Once, easily report such photos and videos. Follow the steps below:
1. Open a conversation window and long press the View Once message. At that time, tap the three-dot menu icon in the upper right corner of the screen. Select the ‘Report’ option here to share the contents of this disappearing message with WhatsApp.
2. From the pop-up message displayed, Tap on the ‘Report’ option once again to confirm your choice and report the user’s View Once content.
3. Alternatively, you can report contacts while viewing the lost photo or video. Tap the three-dot menu icon in the top right and Select ‘Report’ [contact name] choice.
How to Report a WhatsApp Contact or Spam Chat
If there is more than one message you want to report in a chat, choose to report the person instead. In this way, The last five messages from the contact will be forwarded to WhatsApp.
1. To get started, open the chat window, tap the three-dot menu icon and Choose ‘More’.
2. Next, tap on ‘Report’ and press ‘Report’ again from the popup that appears. You can block the contact and delete the conversation by selecting the ‘Block contact and delete chat’ checkbox.
Extreme Measures: Block a Contact on WhatsApp
Now is the time to take extreme measures if you are getting spam texts, potentially harmful content via View Once or other problematic content even after reporting WhatsApp contact and messages in the past. You should block such people from WhatsApp and we will teach you how to do that here:
1. Open a conversation, tap the three-dot icon in the upper right corner. Select ‘Menu’ from the drop-down menu and then ‘Block’ option.
2. Tap on ‘Block’ from the drop-down menu that now appears. You can also choose to report the person one more time while blocking the person at the same time by selecting the ‘Report and Block’ option.
3. Alternatively, tap the contact’s name or phone number at the top and swipe down Find the ‘Block’ option.
Report WhatsApp Messages in Easy Steps
When there is clearly a spam message, you might consider reporting individual messages. For other conversations, we recommend using the report person option to report multiple messages at once to give moderators some context. So yes, considering it’s in beta, it shouldn’t be long before the company brings the individual message reporting feature to all users via the stable release. After reporting the message, you can continue using the best WhatsApp tricks, including the option to use WhatsApp as 2FA on Instagram.
