Permanent WhatsApp ban: what you need to know and how to avoid it

Permanent WhatsApp ban: what you need to know and how to avoid it

Some of you may have seen the stories floating around that, following the temporary bans imposed by WhatsApp on those making use of unauthorized WhatsApp clients like WhatsAppMD and WhatsApp+, permanent bans for the lifetime of a phone number are now being unceremoniously doled out. Not quite.

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As was the case with the panic button being pre-emptively pushed regarding the temporary ban, a simple email to WhatsApp has cleared things right up. Despite several reports claiming users of alternative WhatsApp clients (that WhatsApp has been taking pains to shut down recently) are suffering a lifetime WhatsApp ban, the ”permanent” ban is only permanent insofar as those users continue to use unauthorized apps that make use of WhatsApp’s core service.

Much like with the temporary lockouts previously, this ”permanent” ban has been blown out of the water and is totally reversible if you stop using WhatsAppMD, OGWhatsApp or WhatsApp+ or whatever your particular brand of poison might be. While you may not like WhatsApp taking control over their own product, they certainly have the right to. As a WhatsApp spokesman had to say:

There is no permanent ban. But if people continue to use WhatsApp+ they will not be able to use WhatsApp as we have said previously. Once they uninstall the unauthorized app and install [the official] WhatsApp they will be able to use WhatsApp. So there is no change in our position here.

So if you’ve found yourself facing lifetime ban from WhatsApp it’s probably because you failed to heed the previous warning: WhatsApp wants WhatsApp left as WhatsApp. If you think you can’t live without some WhatsApp+ features, then write WhatsApp an email requesting it for inclusion in a future update. Because if you don’t you’ll soon be missing out on all WhatsApp features altogether.