Monitor WhatsApp event notification delivery and logs.
This page covers WhatsApp message format, send history, delivery logs, and the suppression list for event notifications. Open WhatsApp history, WhatsApp delivery logs, and WhatsApp suppression in the admin console. For org-wide subscriber admin, see WhatsApp subscribers. For how visitors subscribe on /subscribe, see WhatsApp subscriptions.
When an event with Notifications enabled triggers a delivery, matching verified WhatsApp subscribers receive a templated message describing the event at send time.
Description and impact analysis are flattened to plain text in the event summary. Messages include your business name, type, status, and title. A short link to the event is included when the dashboard and event are public. Subscribers can reply STOP to opt out.
For how Visibility and subscription toggles affect delivery across channels, see Notifications overview — FAQ. Turning the dashboard Subscriptions WhatsApp toggle off hides public sign-up; existing verified subscribers still receive deliveries.
Message format
Incidents and maintenance
[Business Name]
Incident - Investigating - event_title
https://your-status-host/l/shortCodeInformational events
[Business Name]
Info - event_title
https://your-status-host/l/shortCode| Part | Description |
|---|---|
| Business Name | Your organization's display name — the same value shown as Business name on the Account page |
| Event summary | Short labels such as Incident - Investigating or Maint - In Progress, plus the event title (truncated when needed) |
| Short link | Temporary link to the event on your status dashboard (/l/…) when the dashboard and event are public |
| Opt-out | Footer text lets subscribers reply STOP to opt out of WhatsApp alerts |
Examples:
- Acme Corp —
Incident - Investigating - API degradationplus short link - Acme Corp —
Maint - In Progress - Database upgradeplus short link - Acme Corp —
Info - Planned maintenance windowplus short link
Subscribers see this content inside a fixed StatusDashboard message layout in the WhatsApp app.
Dashboard visibility and subscriptions
For how Visibility and subscription toggles affect delivery across channels, see Notifications overview — FAQ. WhatsApp-specific effects:
| Setting | Effect on event notification WhatsApp |
|---|---|
| Dashboard Visibility off | WhatsApp still sends with the event summary. No short link is included (the dashboard would return 404). |
| Event not published | WhatsApp still sends with the event summary. No short link is included (the event page would return 404). |
| Subscriptions toggle off | WhatsApp still sends to existing subscribers. Sign-up and self-service manage flows are hidden; admins can still add and edit subscribers on WhatsApp subscribers. |
| Dashboard and event both public | WhatsApp includes a short link to the event on the status dashboard. |
See Subscriptions overview for what the dashboard subscription toggle controls on the public status page.
Short links
Event (and subscription) WhatsApp messages use temporary short links on your status dashboard host when a link is included.
- Links are created per send and expire automatically after a retention window (event-view links are retained for 30 days).
- Opening a short link on the wrong host (or after expiry) does not reveal the target — visitors see an in-app message on that status page (not the platform “status page doesn’t exist” page).
- Open short links on the live status dashboard hostname for that dashboard.
Monthly WhatsApp quota
Event notification WhatsApp messages count against your organization's WhatsApp messages per month plan quota (UTC calendar month). Check usage against your plan limit (enabledFeatures.whatsappMessages).
- Subscription WhatsApp (verify and manage messages from your status dashboard) do not count toward this limit.
- When you are at or over the limit, new event notifications are not delivered. Delivery stops at the limit (partial batches send only what remains). Skipped sends are not retried.
- Event saves always succeed — quota applies only to asynchronous outbound delivery.
Send history
WhatsApp history shows a UTC calendar-month bar graph of event notification WhatsApp sends per day. Navigate 13 months of history with previous/next month controls. Counts match your monthly WhatsApp quota population on Overview (event notifications only). All bucketing uses UTC calendar days and months.
Delivery logs
WhatsApp delivery logs are an organization-wide audit trail of outbound notification messages — not tied to a single event or dashboard row. They answer whether a message was accepted, delivered, blocked, or skipped before send.
After StatusDashboard hands a notification off to WhatsApp (Meta Cloud API), each row shows what happened next:
| Field | Meaning |
|---|---|
| Recipient | Who the message was addressed to (WhatsApp phone number in E.164) |
| Preview | Truncated message preview at send time |
| Type | What triggered the send — event notification, subscription verify, or subscription manage |
| Status | Aggregate outcome (see below) |
| Timeline | Provider lifecycle events appended after handoff (sent, delivered, failed, and so on) |
Use Filter by recipient to search for a specific number. Logs are retained for 30 days, then removed automatically.
Status values
| Status | Meaning |
|---|---|
| Submitted | Log row created; handoff to WhatsApp may still be in progress |
| Sent | Accepted by WhatsApp for delivery |
| Delivered | WhatsApp confirmed delivery to the recipient device |
| Blocked | Permanent-class failure reported by WhatsApp (invalid number, user block, spam, protect, and so on) |
| Failed | Handoff failed before WhatsApp accepted the message |
| Skipped | Send was skipped because the recipient is on your organization's suppression list — WhatsApp was never called and no quota is consumed. Clear on WhatsApp suppression. |
A Skipped row is intentional: it records that a notification would have been sent but was suppressed to protect deliverability and honor opt-outs. See Suppression for how to clear a number when the underlying issue is fixed.
Suppression
Hard failures and opt-outs can damage deliverability for everyone on your account. StatusDashboard maintains an organization-wide suppression list on WhatsApp suppression so problem destinations are not retried on every future notification.
When a number is suppressed, all outbound WhatsApp messages to that destination are skipped — event alerts, verification messages, and manage messages. The send is recorded in delivery logs as Skipped (no quota consumed).
STOP and START
Subscribers can opt out by sending STOP (or an equivalent keyword such as END, CANCEL, or UNSUBSCRIBE) in WhatsApp:
- Their number is added to your suppression list with reason Opt-out.
- No further WhatsApp messages are sent until the suppression is cleared.
- They remain on your subscriber list — phone, dashboard, and component selections are unchanged. STOP is a delivery suppression, not a subscription delete.
To receive messages again, the subscriber can send START (or an equivalent re-opt-in keyword such as UNSTOP or YES). StatusDashboard clears the Opt-out suppression for your organization. Messages resume on the next qualifying send — missed alerts are not sent again automatically. They must still be a verified subscriber with at least one component selected to receive event notifications.
Subscriber preferences vs. suppressed delivery
| Action | Subscriber list | Future WhatsApp messages |
|---|---|---|
| Clear all components (manage page or admin edit) | Kept; status No components | None until components are added again |
| Send STOP in WhatsApp | Kept; selections unchanged | None until opt-out is cleared |
| Admin Delete subscriber | Removed from that dashboard | None |
How numbers get on the list
| Reason | When it is added |
|---|---|
| Opt-out | The recipient sends STOP (or an equivalent keyword) in WhatsApp |
| Invalid | WhatsApp reports the destination number as invalid or undeliverable |
| User block | The recipient blocked your business or the message cannot reach the user |
| Spam / Protect | WhatsApp or protect rules block the message as abusive or non-compliant |
START clears Opt-out suppressions only. Suppressions for invalid, user block, spam, or protect are not cleared by START — fix the underlying issue, then remove the row as an admin when appropriate.
Transient failures vs. permanent suppressions
A single failed delivery does not always add a permanent suppression.
| What happened | Suppression list | What to expect next |
|---|---|---|
| Temporary issue (device offline, network delay) | Usually not added | The next send may succeed — check the delivery log timeline |
| STOP message | Opt-out added | Future sends skipped until START or you remove the suppression after confirming consent |
| Invalid, user block, spam, or protect | Added with matching reason | Future sends skipped until you remove the suppression after fixing the issue |
Entries do not expire. They stay until an admin deletes them (or WhatsApp continues to reject the destination independently).
Removing a number
Click Remove on a row and confirm. That clears the number from StatusDashboard's suppression list for your organization.
- Removing an entry allows future sends when the next qualifying event or subscription message runs (unless WhatsApp still rejects the destination).
- If the recipient previously opted out with STOP, they should send START as well. Removing a row here alone may not be enough — a failed send can re-add an Opt-out suppression automatically.
- StatusDashboard does not resend missed notifications automatically.
- If the number is still invalid or opted out at WhatsApp, the next send may fail and the number may be suppressed again.
Only remove a number after you have confirmed it is appropriate to resume contact (consent restored, typo fixed, and so on).
Frequently asked questions
Why does a delivery log show Skipped instead of Blocked?
The recipient was already on your organization's suppression list when the notification was evaluated. StatusDashboard skipped the send and wrote a Skipped log row. Check the suppression list to see why the number was suppressed and whether it is safe to remove.
A number failed once — will we keep messaging them?
After a permanent-class failure (invalid, user block, spam, protect) or an opt-out, the number is added to the suppression list and future notification sends are skipped until you remove it. Transient failures do not always add a suppression entry; you may see a failed timeline event without a matching suppression row.
Why does a short link show “Link not valid”?
The status dashboard still loaded — only that link is unusable. Common causes: the temporary link expired, the code was mistyped, or it was opened on a different status-dashboard host. This is different from the platform message that the entire status page does not exist.