News
WhatsApp Hid Instructions in Help Pages Telling Its AI Chatbot Not to Recommend Privacy Regulators
First reported thehackernews.com
Page published
Earliest dated coverage: 20 Oct 2026 · First observed: 20 Oct 2026 · Latest dated coverage: 20 Oct 2026
Coverage timeline
Single-source incident — one report is available.
Why it matters
WhatsApp’s exposed instructions raise concerns about covert steering of AI support responses concerning privacy rights, although the report does not demonstrate attacker exploitation or successful chatbot manipulation.
WhatsApp help-page code exposed hidden instructions telling its AI support chatbot not to recommend privacy regulators to users unable to delete their accounts. Redact discovered the instructions, which were removed by October 18, but did not establish whether the chatbot followed them; WhatsApp attributed their appearance on the pages to a bug.