privacy

If you have an idealogical reason not to (like majority of the users in privacy based communities) then you already have your answer and you can read them in the comments.

I'm going to be different here and answer from a practical perspective and say that sigh yes it's probably fine to use WhatsApp if you already use Instagram.

By this point Meta already knows more about you then you'd probably feel comfortable with. They're very good at micro analysing every little signal you generate when you use their platform. I think it's somewhere in the realm of $30 per user per year they make off the average Instagram user. That's the value of how much data they have on you.

WhatsApp users are not monetized so there's less incentive to track you to that extent. Also, WhatsApp messages are mostly end-to-end encrypted. You are giving up your phone number but they probably already have it.

If it were the other way around and you already used WhatsApp but not Instagram I would say NO. But as it is, WhatsApp does not represent a meaningfully significant decrease in your privacy if you already habitually use Instagram.

use Signal instead – same encryption that Whatsapp copied but without Facebook’s backdoors built in

the idea is don’t put all your eggs into one (corporate) basket – your first choice should be privacy-oriented FOSS apps, but if you have to use privacy-invading apps, spread out the love among different corporations, make them put at least some token effort into compiling your profile

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Using any of the so-called “Magnificent 7” puts you “on the radar,” so no, there’s no point avoiding WhatsApp if you’re already Meta’d up with Insta.

Instagram can be used with only a login and email, so you can be anonymous without any contact info.

If you use the Instagram app with live cell service then it's already copied all of your contact info from scanning phone details.

That doesn't mean you might as well register your number with Whatsapp, in the same way that someone can use Instagram without ever using Facebook or Messenger.

I do agree about try to use Signal in place of Whaysapp, nit along side Whatsapp, if for no other reason than to compartmentalize your data and your info. Think of it this way, seperating security from privacy, Whatsapp is far better than plain texting for security. If you want privacy and unrecoverable conversations, it starts at Signal, but still goes higher from there if a person is open to learning more technical apps like SimpleX.

Don't use either.