Privacy Settings

Configure WhatsApp privacy settings for your instance.

POST /chat/updatePrivacySettings/:instanceName

cURL (Maximum Privacy)

curl --request POST \
  --url https://api.example.com/chat/updatePrivacySettings/my-instance \
  --header 'apikey: YOUR_API_KEY' \
  --header 'Content-Type: application/json' \
  --data '{
    "readreceipts": "none",
    "profile": "contacts",
    "status": "contacts",
    "online": "match_last_seen",
    "last": "contacts",
    "groupadd": "contacts"
  }'

curl --request POST \
  --url https://api.example.com/chat/updatePrivacySettings/my-instance \
  --header 'apikey: YOUR_API_KEY' \
  --header 'Content-Type: application/json' \
  --data '{
    "readreceipts": "all",
    "profile": "all",
    "status": "all",
    "online": "all",
    "last": "all",
    "groupadd": "all"
  }'

const response = await fetch(
  'https://api.example.com/chat/updatePrivacySettings/my-instance',
  {
    method: 'POST',
    headers: {
      'apikey': 'YOUR_API_KEY',
      'Content-Type': 'application/json'
    },
    body: JSON.stringify({
      readreceipts: 'all',
      profile: 'contacts',
      status: 'contacts',
      online: 'match_last_seen',
      last: 'contacts',
      groupadd: 'contacts'
    })
  }
);

const data = await response.json();

import requests

response = requests.post(
    'https://api.example.com/chat/updatePrivacySettings/my-instance',
    headers={
        'apikey': 'YOUR_API_KEY',
        'Content-Type': 'application/json'
    },
    json={
        'readreceipts': 'all',
        'profile': 'contacts',
        'status': 'contacts',
        'online': 'match_last_seen',
        'last': 'contacts',
        'groupadd': 'contacts'
    }
)

data = response.json()

201 Success

{
  "success": true,
  "settings": {
    "readreceipts": "all",
    "profile": "contacts",
    "status": "contacts",
    "online": "match_last_seen",
    "last": "contacts",
    "groupadd": "contacts"
  }
}

{
  "error": "Invalid privacy setting",
  "message": "Invalid value for 'profile'. Must be one of: all, contacts, contact_blacklist, none"
}

{
  "error": "Unauthorized",
  "message": "Invalid API key"
}

{
  "error": "Instance not found",
  "message": "The instance 'my-instance' does not exist"
}

Overview

You can control who can see your profile information, online status, last seen, and who can add you to groups. These settings mirror the privacy options available in WhatsApp’s settings.

Privacy settings affect how your WhatsApp account appears to others. Changes to these settings apply to all contacts unless you have specific contact-level exceptions set in WhatsApp.

Authentication

This endpoint requires authentication via the apikey header.

header.apikey · string · required

Your Evolution API key for authentication.

Path Parameters

path.instanceName · string · required

The name of your WhatsApp instance.

Request Body

readreceipts · string · required

Read receipt visibility. Options:

• all: Send read receipts to everyone
• none: Don’t send read receipts (note: you also won’t see others’ read receipts)

profile · string · required

Who can see your profile photo. Options:

• all: Everyone
• contacts: Only your contacts
• contact_blacklist: All except specific contacts
• none: Nobody

status · string · required

Who can see your status updates. Options:

• all: Everyone
• contacts: Only your contacts
• contact_blacklist: All except specific contacts
• none: Nobody

online · string · required

Who can see when you’re online. Options:

• all: Everyone
• match_last_seen: Same as your “Last Seen” setting

last · string · required

Who can see your last seen timestamp. Options:

• all: Everyone
• contacts: Only your contacts
• contact_blacklist: All except specific contacts
• none: Nobody

groupadd · string · required

Who can add you to groups. Options:

• all: Everyone can add you
• contacts: Only your contacts can add you
• contact_blacklist: All except specific contacts can add you

Response

success · boolean

Whether the privacy settings were updated successfully.

settings · object

The updated privacy settings.

Show properties

readreceipts · string

Read receipts setting.

profile · string

Profile photo visibility.

status · string

Status updates visibility.

online · string

Online presence visibility.

last · string

Last seen visibility.

groupadd · string

Group add permission.

cURL (Maximum Privacy)

curl --request POST \
  --url https://api.example.com/chat/updatePrivacySettings/my-instance \
  --header 'apikey: YOUR_API_KEY' \
  --header 'Content-Type: application/json' \
  --data '{
    "readreceipts": "none",
    "profile": "contacts",
    "status": "contacts",
    "online": "match_last_seen",
    "last": "contacts",
    "groupadd": "contacts"
  }'

curl --request POST \
  --url https://api.example.com/chat/updatePrivacySettings/my-instance \
  --header 'apikey: YOUR_API_KEY' \
  --header 'Content-Type: application/json' \
  --data '{
    "readreceipts": "all",
    "profile": "all",
    "status": "all",
    "online": "all",
    "last": "all",
    "groupadd": "all"
  }'

const response = await fetch(
  'https://api.example.com/chat/updatePrivacySettings/my-instance',
  {
    method: 'POST',
    headers: {
      'apikey': 'YOUR_API_KEY',
      'Content-Type': 'application/json'
    },
    body: JSON.stringify({
      readreceipts: 'all',
      profile: 'contacts',
      status: 'contacts',
      online: 'match_last_seen',
      last: 'contacts',
      groupadd: 'contacts'
    })
  }
);

const data = await response.json();

import requests

response = requests.post(
    'https://api.example.com/chat/updatePrivacySettings/my-instance',
    headers={
        'apikey': 'YOUR_API_KEY',
        'Content-Type': 'application/json'
    },
    json={
        'readreceipts': 'all',
        'profile': 'contacts',
        'status': 'contacts',
        'online': 'match_last_seen',
        'last': 'contacts',
        'groupadd': 'contacts'
    }
)

data = response.json()

201 Success

{
  "success": true,
  "settings": {
    "readreceipts": "all",
    "profile": "contacts",
    "status": "contacts",
    "online": "match_last_seen",
    "last": "contacts",
    "groupadd": "contacts"
  }
}

{
  "error": "Invalid privacy setting",
  "message": "Invalid value for 'profile'. Must be one of: all, contacts, contact_blacklist, none"
}

{
  "error": "Unauthorized",
  "message": "Invalid API key"
}

{
  "error": "Instance not found",
  "message": "The instance 'my-instance' does not exist"
}

Privacy Setting Explanations

Read Receipts

If you disable read receipts (none), you also won’t be able to see when others read your messages. This is a WhatsApp limitation.

Profile Photo, Status, and Last Seen

These settings control visibility for different aspects of your profile:

• all: Everyone can see
• contacts: Only people in your contacts
• contact_blacklist: Everyone except specific blocked contacts
• none: Nobody can see

Online Status

The match_last_seen option for online status means it follows the same privacy setting as your “Last Seen” timestamp.

Group Add Permission

Control who can add you to groups without your permission:

• all: Anyone can add you
• contacts: Only your contacts can add you
• contact_blacklist: Anyone except blocked contacts can add you

For bot accounts, consider setting groupadd to all to allow anyone to add your bot to groups.

Get Current Privacy Settings

To fetch current privacy settings:

GET /chat/fetchPrivacySettings/:instanceName

This returns your current privacy configuration.

cURL

curl --request GET \
  --url https://api.example.com/chat/fetchPrivacySettings/my-instance \
  --header 'apikey: YOUR_API_KEY'

Usage Notes

Changes to privacy settings are permanent and affect how your WhatsApp account operates. Make sure you understand each setting before modifying it.

For business or bot accounts, more open privacy settings (like all or contacts) generally provide a better user experience.

Privacy settings are stored in WhatsApp’s servers and persist across device changes and instance recreations.