Anti-blocking strategy

WhatsApp aggressively bans numbers that exhibit "bot-like" behavior: identical messages to many contacts in seconds, too many sends per hour, sending to people who haven't saved your number. Effess can't change WhatsApp's policy, but it ships with a defense-in-depth strategy to keep you safe.

Anti-ban pacing settings

The 7 defenses

1. Random delays

Default 5-30s gap between sends, jittered. You see fixed delays in spam-tool screenshots — that's the giveaway WhatsApp scans for. Random + jittered looks human.

2. Hourly caps

80 messages/hour by default. Bump up only after a number is warmed and trusted. Going over 200/hr from a cold number is high-risk.

3. Warm-up mode

For a new number, Effess gradually ramps up over 7-14 days:

4. Duplicate detection

Effess skips sending the same body to the same number within 24h — a common accidental cause of bans.

5. Number validation

Before sending, Effess checks each number actually exists on WhatsApp (via wa-js's checkNumberStatus). Sending to non-existent numbers is a major bot signal.

6. Ban-warning detection

WhatsApp Web shows a banner like "You're sending too many messages…". Effess watches for it and auto-pauses the entire queue within seconds. You get a notification.

7. Personalisation

Use {name} and other variables. Identical message bodies across 100 recipients trigger spam filters. Even a one-word difference matters.

Operational tips

• Don't share lists with strangers — a list that's been spammed already is poisoned.
• Respect opt-out replies — when someone says "stop", tag them opt-out and your filters/automations should skip them forever.
• Spread across numbers — if you have multiple WhatsApp numbers, rotate them with the multi-account feature (in beta).
• Avoid weekends/nights for cold messaging — looks even more bot-like.

If you get banned

WhatsApp bans range from 24h temporary to permanent. If you see "This account is not allowed to use WhatsApp":

1. Stop using that number with Effess immediately.
2. Wait 24-48h before any retry.
3. If permanent, contact WA support — they sometimes restore numbers used for legitimate small-business communication.
4. The ban is on your number, not on Effess. Reinstalling Effess won't help.

Bottom line

Effess gives you the throttle. You decide how to use it. Used responsibly — small lists, personalised messages, opt-in audiences — bans are rare.