WhatsApp confirms major change is on the way for users and you may not like it!

Users of the popular messaging app WhatsApp will soon begin seeing advertisements on the platform, the company has announced.

The platform has hundreds of thousands of active users in Ireland who use it to communicate with family, friends and colleagues on a daily basis.

However, in a blog post confirming the roll out of a new advertisement feature, WhatsApp says ads will not be visible to users within their chats.

Any adverts will be visible behind the 'Updates' tab under the 'Status' or 'Channels' banners.

WhatsApp, which is free to download and use, says personal messages, calls, and status' updates will remain end-to-end encrypted, meaning nobody else will be able to access them.

"Our ads will appear in the Updates tab, in Status and Channels, where people are open to discovery. The personal messaging experience on WhatsApp isn’t changing, and personal messages, calls and statuses are end-to-end encrypted and cannot be used to show ads," reads the blog post.

READ NEXT: Irish customers warned as popular Dunnes Stores dessert pulled from shelves over allergy fears

WhatsApp says it will "never sell or share" users' phone numbers to advertisers and that personal messages, calls and groups users are in will not be used to determine the ads they see.

WhatsApp says it has been talking about its plans to build a business that does not interrupt personal chats for years, and that it believes the Updates tab is the right place for the new advertising features to work.

Under the new system, Channels and businesses will be able to pay to appear in the 'Status' section of the app, with users able to start a conversation on WhatsApp about a product or service with the business if they wish.

"To show ads in Status or Channels you might care about, we'll use limited info like your country or city, language, the Channels you’re following, and how you interact with the ads you see. For people that have chosen to add WhatsApp to Accounts Center, we'll also use your ad preferences and info from across your Meta accounts," reads the blog.

Click here to read more.