WhatsApp numbers › How we verify

How we verify official WhatsApp numbers

Fake customer-care numbers are a common way to cheat people in India. Someone searches for a brand's WhatsApp number, finds a number on a random website, and ends up chatting with a stranger who asks for an OTP or a UPI payment. This index exists so you can find the number a brand publishes itself, and see where it came from.

The one rule: the brand's own website

We list a number only if we found it on the brand's official website. We never take numbers from other directories, social media comments, ads, review sites or search results. Each brand page shows:

• the number, with a one-tap "Chat on WhatsApp" button;
• the page on the brand's website where we found it (click it to check for yourself);
• the date we last checked it.

How a number gets in

1. We start from the brand's official website address. It comes from public sources such as Wikidata or a brand list we checked by hand, and we confirm the site loads and belongs to the brand.
2. We read the homepage and up to five of the site's own contact, support, help or FAQ pages.
3. We look for WhatsApp in places that are meant for customers: "Chat on WhatsApp" links (wa.me or api.whatsapp.com), chat buttons, the site's structured contact details, and numbers printed next to the word WhatsApp.
4. A number has to pass a check before we publish it. A WhatsApp link or chat button counts most; a number printed next to the word WhatsApp counts less on its own. Being on a contact page, in the footer or next to words like "customer care" adds to it.

What we leave out

• Numbers that look personal, for example a founder's number on an "About us" page. We list business support numbers only.
• Toll-free numbers (1800 / 1860). They can't receive WhatsApp messages.
• Numbers that appear on many unrelated websites. These usually belong to a web agency or a website template, not the brand.
• Sample numbers such as 98765 43210.
• Websites that ask crawlers not to visit them (robots.txt), or that refuse our visit.

How we keep it current

We check every brand's website again regularly. If a number disappears from the brand's website, we take it off the brand's page. If we have not been able to confirm a number for 60 days, we hide it. When a brand changes its number, the page shows when it changed.

What a listing does not mean

• A listing is not an endorsement, and the brands have not paid to be here.
• A number that is not in the index (1033 brands today) is not necessarily fake. Many brands don't publish a WhatsApp number at all. Check the brand's own website, or use our checker: Is this WhatsApp number official?
• Whoever asks, never share an OTP, UPI PIN, card PIN or password on WhatsApp.

For brands

Is your number wrong or missing, or do you want your page removed? Use Report a wrong number / remove this page. We act on removal requests quickly. Want to check how easy it is for customers to reach you on WhatsApp? Run the free store WhatsApp audit.

The index is made by ChatDesq, a WhatsApp Business platform for Indian brands by Apporio Infolabs Pvt Ltd, Noida. Questions: hello@chatdesq.com.