LGPD

WhatsApp Help Pages Hid Secret Instructions Directing AI Bot to Avoid GDPR References

Researchers at Redact discovered hidden instructions embedded in WhatsApp's public help documentation that instructed the company's AI support chatbot to avoid recommending users contact data protection regulators. The instructions also prohibited the bot from referencing GDPR, LGPD, or CCPA when users mentioned legal proceedings or lawyers. The findings emerged after Redact analyzed 545 help pages and identified 102 concealed blocks across 80 of them. One directive explicitly told the bot not to suggest contacting supervisory authorities even when users had lost access to their phone number and could not delete their account, despite WhatsApp's own European privacy policy stating that such complaints are permitted. WhatsApp confirmed to WIRED that the blocks were intended solely for its internal chatbot and attributed their public exposure to an error. The company stated the restrictions aimed to prevent the bot from offering legal advice. All hidden blocks were removed by October 18.

WhatsApp Secretly Instructed AI Support Bot to Suppress References to Data Regulators and Privacy Laws

Investigators discovered hidden instructions embedded in WhatsApp's public help pages that directed the company's AI chatbot to avoid recommending users contact data protection authorities. The instructions also prohibited the AI from citing privacy regulations such as GDPR, LGPD, or CCPA, even when users raised these topics themselves. The directives appeared on pages about account deletion and complaints, remaining invisible to human visitors but delivered to crawlers and the AI model. WhatsApp later confirmed the text was intended for its internal support chatbot and attributed the exposure to an error that has since been corrected. The findings highlight a gap between the company's publicly stated privacy policy and the operational guidance given to its AI systems.

Small and Medium Businesses Accelerate Cybersecurity Investments as AI-Powered Attacks Rise

Owners of small and medium enterprises have begun treating cybersecurity as a core business priority rather than an afterthought. The rise of artificial intelligence has made it easier to develop and launch web platforms, mobile applications, and digital services without large teams, but this expansion has also triggered a surge in automated AI-driven attacks and data leaks affecting companies of every size. The outdated assumption that smaller operations are too insignificant to target no longer holds, as AI-powered scans probe the internet for any available vulnerability around the clock. When breaches occur, consequences extend beyond technical damage to include LGPD fines, operational downtime, and lasting loss of customer trust built over years. In response, entrepreneurs are focusing investments on three main areas: web application firewalls, recurring AI-assisted pentesting, and autonomous security operations centers. Solutions from Cloudflare, HackerSec, and SentinelOne are frequently adopted because they offer robust protection without requiring dedicated in-house security staff. This shift marks a broader change in mindset, where security is now viewed as an essential component of sustainable growth rather than a cost to be deferred until after an incident.