Privacy blur on WhatsApp Web (shared-screen mode)

You are on a call and share Chrome. WhatsApp Web is open. Names, photos, and the last message in every row are suddenly on the screen for everyone.

WhatsApp does not give you a one-key blur for that. I built one into WA Folders for Chrome + https://web.whatsapp.com only (not the phone app).

What you need

1. Chrome
2. WhatsApp Web signed in
3. WA Folders: https://chromewebstore.google.com/detail/wa-folders/hahfpdlfieloofgjhanljbbnakinfhil?utm_source=devto&utm_medium=article&utm_campaign=3fgh

Written against WA Folders 1.2.4. The current Chrome Web Store version is 1.2.9.

Turn privacy blur on

1. Open https://web.whatsapp.com and wait until your chats appear.
2. Turn blur on with the eye control in the WA Folders panel, or press Alt+Shift+U. If chrome://extensions/shortcuts shows "Not set" for it, another extension already uses that key, so pick your own there.
3. Names (including the chat name at the top of the open chat), profile photos, and messages on the page blur.
4. Hover a row or a message to peek; move away to blur again.
5. Use the eye control (or Alt+Shift+U) again to turn blur off.

What blur is (and is not)

• It blurs what is on screen in every open WhatsApp Web tab in that Chrome profile.
• It is not a WhatsApp account lock and not a PIN for the phone.
• Data still stays in chrome.storage.local on this device. Blur does not upload chats.
• WA Folders never sends messages. No bulk send, no auto-reply, no CRM.

Nearby tools if you live in the browser

• Command palette: Ctrl+K on WhatsApp Web (or the extension shortcut Alt+Shift+K) to jump to a chat or run an action (add to folder, set a reminder, export).
• Panic key: Alt+Shift+H hides WhatsApp Web at once. Press it again or click Show to bring it back.
• Folders / Smart Views / notes / Due / export are covered in earlier posts from this account if you want the full local workflow.

Soft ask

If blur saved an awkward share-screen moment, a one-line Chrome Web Store review helps the next person decide. No perk for writing one.

Listing: https://chromewebstore.google.com/detail/wa-folders/hahfpdlfieloofgjhanljbbnakinfhil?utm_source=devto&utm_medium=article&utm_campaign=3fgh

Related: the rest of the local workflow is in How to make folders in WhatsApp Web, How to organize WhatsApp Web chats into folders, How to search WhatsApp Web messages, and why some don't show up and How to export a WhatsApp Web chat, and what ends up in the file.