Why Does WhatsApp Show Me Online When I’m Not?

Instant messaging has become a staple form of communication for millions of people worldwide. The most widely used app for this purpose is WhatsApp, owned by Meta, the company that manages Facebook and Instagram.

WhatsApp is popular due to its simplicity and the plethora of functions it offers, such as text messages, voice calls, image and document sharing, and more. Despite its widespread use, there are still some hidden aspects of WhatsApp.

For instance, some users appear online even when they’re not. WhatsApp explains that an online status signifies that the user has the app open in the foreground and is connected to the internet. But is there more to it?

A user may be marked as “online” even if they haven’t viewed any messages or have stopped using the app altogether.

WhatsApp clarifies that “last seen” information indicates the last time a contact used the service. In the privacy settings, users can choose to display or hide this information. If a person doesn’t have you in their contacts or hasn’t chatted with you before, they won’t be able to see your “last seen” and online status.

If you can’t see a contact’s “last seen” information or online status, it could be because they’ve chosen to hide it, or because you’ve configured your privacy settings to not share your “last seen” information.

Other possibilities include the contact blocking you, not having chatted with you before, or not having your number saved in their contacts.

As for why users appear online when they’ve stopped using WhatsApp, this is due to the app running in the background to perform tasks like backing up data.

La Vanguardia explains that this “error” has been occurring for several years and is a result of the app performing background tasks such as making backups, encrypting data, and more.

During these processes, users may appear online even if they’re not actively using the app. This is because the app continues to perform backups and saves, even when you’re not on WhatsApp.

As a result, other users may see you as online for a while after you’ve stopped using the app. The Fayerwayer website states that this “apparent connection” usually lasts between 15 and 30 seconds but can be longer if your Wi-Fi connection is slow, as it takes longer for the app to perform its tasks.

To prevent appearing online when you’re not, you can force close the app by going to Settings, Applications, and WhatsApp once you’ve finished using it.