Two-step verification adds a 6-digit PIN that WhatsApp asks for whenever your number is registered on a phone. Even if a scammer tricks you out of the SMS code, they still cannot get in without this PIN. It is the single best way to protect your account.
On Android
- Tap ⋮ › Settings › Account › Two-step verification.
- Tap Turn on.
- Type a 6-digit PIN you will remember, then type it again to confirm.
- Add an email address (recommended) and confirm it, or tap Skip. The email lets you reset the PIN if you forget it.
- Tap Done.
On iPhone
- Tap Settings › Account › Two-step verification › Turn on.
- Enter and confirm a 6-digit PIN.
- Add and confirm an email address, or skip it.
- Tap Done.
Choosing a good PIN
- Do not use 123456, 000000, your birth year or the last digits of your phone number.
- Do not use the same PIN as your UPI or ATM card.
- WhatsApp will sometimes ask you to type the PIN to help you remember it. That is normal.
Change or turn off the PIN
Go to the same place (Settings › Account › Two-step verification) and tap Change PIN, Change email address or Turn off.
Forgot your PIN?
- On the PIN screen, tap Forgot PIN?.
- If you added an email, choose to send a reset link, open the email and follow it. You can then register without the old PIN.
- Without an email, you have to wait 7 days before WhatsApp lets you register again without the PIN. If you do this, messages that came in while you were waiting may be lost.
If it doesn't work
- No reset email: check the Spam folder and that you typed the same email you added earlier.
- Someone else set a PIN on your number (you never set one): your account was taken over. Follow recover a hacked account.
Safety tip
Nobody genuine, not WhatsApp, a bank or the police, will ever ask for your WhatsApp PIN or SMS code. Anyone who asks is trying to steal your account.
This is GroupChatOn’s own easy guide. We are not WhatsApp and are not linked with WhatsApp or Meta. WhatsApp sometimes changes its menus: if a button looks different on your phone, update WhatsApp from the Play Store or App Store.
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