WhatsApp Launches New Feature That Shows Sender’s Number, Email And Addresses in Chats
- WhatsApp is rolling out smart text actions that recognise phone numbers, email addresses, dates and locations in messages
- Tapping underlined text lets users save contacts, make calls, open maps or create calendar events
- The feature works on-device without sending message content to WhatsApp, and is gradually rolling out on Android and iOS
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Pascal Oparada is a journalist with Legit.ng, covering technology, energy, stocks, investment, and the economy for over a decade.
WhatsApp is introducing a new feature that allows users to identify phone numbers, email addresses, dates and locations directly from messages, making everyday conversations more convenient.
The messaging platform, owned by Meta, is rolling out smart text actions for Android and iOS users, allowing them to perform common tasks without manually copying information or switching between multiple applications.
Source: UGC
According to WABetaInfo, the feature automatically recognises specific information in messages and highlights it with a dotted underline.
Users can tap the highlighted text to access shortcuts, including saving contacts, making calls, opening maps and creating calendar events.
The update could be particularly useful for millions of Nigerians who rely on WhatsApp for business transactions, customer communication, appointments and everyday interactions.
How WhatsApp's new text feature works
The feature uses automatic text recognition to identify phone numbers, email addresses, dates and physical addresses within conversations.
Whenever WhatsApp detects supported information, it displays a dotted underline beneath the relevant text.
Tapping the underlined information opens a menu containing available actions.
For instance, a customer receiving a business phone number through WhatsApp can save the contact or initiate a call without manually entering the digits.
Similarly, users receiving meeting dates or delivery addresses can quickly create reminders or open locations in their preferred mapping applications.
The shortcuts work with both incoming and outgoing messages.
Four new WhatsApp shortcuts explained
The update supports four major categories of information, each offering different actions.
- Phone numbers: Users can copy numbers, save contacts, make regular phone calls or view available business information.
- Dates and times: Recognised dates can be copied, added to a calendar or used to create WhatsApp events.
- Physical addresses: Users can copy addresses or open locations directly in a mapping application.
- Email addresses: Users can copy email addresses or launch their preferred email application.
Although some functions existed previously, WhatsApp is bringing them together through a more accessible interface.
The development complements WhatsApp's recently introduced Events hub, which allows users to create, organise and review events from the application's settings.
WhatsApp explains privacy and data protection
WhatsApp says the new functionality operates directly on users' devices without transmitting message content to its servers.
The system uses pattern-matching technology to identify recognised text formats locally.
Consequently, the feature does not interfere with WhatsApp's existing end-to-end encryption.
Users can also provide feedback on whether a suggested action was useful.
If a suggestion is incorrect, they can report the problem without sharing the actual message content.
When Nigerian WhatsApp users can access it
The feature is gradually becoming available to users running recent versions of WhatsApp on Android and iOS.
However, not everyone will receive the update simultaneously.
Nigerian users who cannot currently see the dotted underlines may need to update their applications and wait for the phased rollout.
WhatsApp has not announced a specific date for nationwide or global availability.
Source: UGC
For Nigerian entrepreneurs, online vendors and everyday users, the update promises to simplify communication, particularly when exchanging payment contacts, delivery locations and appointment details.
Importantly, the feature recognises information written in messages. It does not automatically reveal a sender's private phone number or email address if those details were not shared.
WhatsApp eyes payment expansion to Nigeria
Legit.ng earlier reported that WhatsApp is developing new payment features for Android and iOS, raising expectations that the Meta-owned messaging platform could expand its financial services into additional countries, potentially including Nigeria.
The development comes as Google Pay expands its presence in Nigeria through partnerships with major commercial banks, intensifying interest in the country's growing digital payments market.
Source: Legit.ng
