Ordinary Gweilo

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WhatsApp – harvesting phone numbers

I sometimes get WhatsApp message that have been sent to hundreds of different Hong Kong phone numbers.  It appears that these are sent so that when they get a response they know that the phone number is active.  Cue even more annoying junk sales calls.

I did a Google search but I can’t find any information about this. 

So does anyone know whether the sender already has the confirmation (that the number is active) when the message is shown as delivered?  Does it matter whether you exit the group (which definitely sends a confirmation message)?

Why doesn’t WhatsApp allow me to simply ignore the group?  Or is there a way to do this that I can’t figure out?

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2 responses to “WhatsApp – harvesting phone numbers”

  1. Private Beach avatar
    Private Beach

    A single tick next to a WhatsApp message says it’s been delivered. Two ticks means the recipient has read it. Not sure what happens if you send to a non-existent number.

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  2. Chris avatar
    Chris

    Well, actually the 2nd tick shows the message has been delivered and it changes colour when it has been read.
    It’s also now possible to mute groups for up to one year, but this would presumably also provide confirmation of delivery.

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