WhatsApp is turning the security dial up to its highest setting, introducing a lockdown-style mode aimed at people who face the most aggressive digital threats. The feature, branded Strict Account Settings, is the clearest sign yet that everyday messaging apps are now on the front line of a fast escalating privacy arms race.
Instead of sprinkling in a few extra toggles, WhatsApp is bundling multiple defenses into a single ultra secure mode that tries to shut down the most common paths used by spyware, account hijackers, and targeted hackers. I see it as a shift from “secure by default” to “hardened on demand,” with high risk users invited to trade a little convenience for a lot more protection.
What Strict Account Settings actually does
At its core, Strict Account Settings is an optional, one click profile lockdown that activates a stack of protections in one go. When a user flips the switch, WhatsApp automatically enables two step verification, turns on security alerts, and tightens controls on who can reach the account, a design that matches the description of a “lockdown style security feature” that reduces vulnerability to cyberattacks in the new Strict mode. The company’s own explanation of Strict Account Settings frames it as a way to keep conversations private even when sophisticated attackers are in play.
Once activated, the mode goes beyond login checks and starts aggressively filtering inbound content. Reports on the rollout describe how the advanced security mode blocks attachments and media from unknown senders, disables link previews, and silences calls from people who are not already in your contacts, turning the app into a kind of high security inbox that treats every unfamiliar interaction as suspicious by default, a behavior that lines up with the new advanced mode. According to WhatsApp’s own support documentation, users can only toggle this setting from their primary device, and the option lives under Privacy and an Advanced submenu, where the path ends at a locked settings screen labelled According to the company.
Who this ultra secure mode is built for
WhatsApp is explicit that this is not a feature for everyone, at least not yet, and that design choice matters. The company says Strict Account Settings is aimed at people who are high value targets for digital surveillance, including journalists, activists, and public figures, a focus that is echoed in coverage of the feature’s launch for high value targets. In practice, that means people whose phones are more likely to be probed by commercial spyware, state backed hackers, or persistent stalkers, rather than casual scammers blasting phishing links.
The company’s own privacy philosophy has long stressed that users should be able to have private conversations “like they do in person,” a line that runs through its core privacy policy and the blog post introducing its latest protection. By carving out a special tier of defenses for those most at risk, WhatsApp is effectively acknowledging that end to end encryption alone is not enough when attackers can exploit device level flaws or social engineering, a point underscored in a detailed explainer on spyware focused attacks.
How Strict mode works under the hood
From a user experience perspective, Strict Account Settings is deliberately simple, a single toggle that hides a complex set of rules. Reports on the rollout describe it as a one click option in settings that then activates a series of defenses, including blocking media and attachments from unknown senders, disabling link previews, and silencing calls from numbers that are not saved, a behavior that matches the description of the new advanced security mode. When someone turns the option on, two step verification is enabled by default and security notifications that flag potential account takeovers are switched on, according to a detailed breakdown of what happens When the setting is enabled.
Underneath that simple switch, Meta is also retooling some of WhatsApp’s plumbing. The company has replaced a legacy C++ media handling security library with Rust, a language designed to eliminate entire classes of memory safety bugs, a change that was highlighted in a technical rundown of how Rust is being used. That move matters because many of the most damaging spyware campaigns have relied on malicious media files to exploit low level flaws, and hardening that layer reduces the attack surface even before Strict Account Settings kicks in to block suspicious attachments outright.
Part of a wider anti‑spyware and privacy push
WhatsApp’s new mode does not exist in a vacuum, it is part of a broader industry trend toward high security profiles for people facing rare but highly sophisticated cyberattacks. Earlier this year, the company was described as the latest major tech firm to offer a high security mode for users who fear surveillance and advanced hackers, a positioning that places it alongside other platforms that have introduced similar protections, a context captured in coverage of the new high security mode. Another analysis notes that WhatsApp is the third major tech firm to boost protection for high risk users with a one toggle lockdown, reinforcing the sense that this is now a standard feature for any platform that wants to be taken seriously on privacy, a point made in reports on the third major firm.
The feature also lands as WhatsApp continues a high profile legal fight over commercial spyware, and as regulators and investors track how privacy risks intersect with markets where the S&P 500 HITS a FRESH RECORD according to a MARKETS LIVE BLOG. In that context, Strict Account Settings is both a security upgrade and a reputational hedge, a way for Meta’s WhatsApp to argue that it is not only encrypting messages but also actively trying to block spyware, a claim that aligns with reports describing the feature as an anti spyware lockdown and a new anti spyware mode for improved security that targets highly sophisticated cyber attacks, as detailed in coverage of the anti spyware mode.
What it means for everyday users and the future of messaging
Even if Strict Account Settings is pitched at high risk users, its existence will shape expectations for everyone else. The company’s FAQ already walks users through how to manage security notifications, two step verification, and device level controls, and the new mode effectively bundles those best practices into a single hardened profile, a pattern that is reflected in the updated FAQ. I expect that over time, some of these protections, like stricter handling of unknown senders or more prominent security alerts, will trickle down into the default experience, just as features that once lived in advanced menus often become standard once users get used to them.
The rollout also underscores how central privacy has become to WhatsApp’s brand. The company’s blog post on its Latest Privacy Protection frames Strict Account Settings as part of a long running effort to keep people safe from those not in their contacts, a message that dovetails with its broader Latest Privacy Protection narrative and its long standing privacy commitments. As more details emerge from reporters like Ivan Mehta, whose coverage credits Image Credits to Jakub Porzyc while unpacking how WhatsApp is rolling out a new stricter security setting to protect users from cyberattacks, it is clear that Strict Account Settings is not a minor tweak but a signal that the privacy arms race inside mainstream messaging apps has entered a new phase, a point reinforced in the detailed breakdown by Ivan Mehta.
More from Morning Overview