Whatsapp is using half of your 4g data behind your back, says report

If you’re shocked by the amount of mobile data your smartphone munches through each and every month – this could be the answer. Smartphones apps like WhatsApp, Facebook Messenger and GMail

consume an alarming quantity of mobile data without users’ knowledge, research has shown. The findings come from Opera Software who discovered a staggering 30 per cent of mobile internet

data is consumed by these apps running in the background. The Norwegian firm named Facebook’s standalone cross-platform Messenger and Google's hugely-popular Gmail app as the biggest

culprits. Between them, these data-hungry applications ate through almost 73 per cent of the total data usage happening in the background. The news comes days after Facebook announced a new

advertising push for its popular Facebook Messenger app. Opera Software’s findings were based on data collected from millions of Opera Max users last December. Popular apps including

WhatsApp and Google Drive accounted for more than half of background data usage. Revealing the results of the research, Product Manager at Opera Software Sergey Lossev said: “Most apps are

made to give a great user experience, not save data. "If you fetch background data through your data plan, it's like throwing away $1 out of every $3 you spend on your mobile data

plan. Most people are not aware of this background data drain and may not have authorised it, nor do they know how to stop it from happening.” Smartphone owners can check how much data their

favourite apps are consuming in a number of ways. iPhone owners can navigate to SETTINGS > MOBILE DATA. iOS will then list every app installed on the device, complete with the amount of

3G or 4G the software has consumed. Statistics can be reset from the same menu, for those who want to monitor the activity of a particular app. Android smartphone owners should navigate to 

SETTINGS > DATA USAGE. Google’s OS will then name and shame the amount of mobile data each app is siphoning from your monthly allowance. There’s also the option to Restrict App Background

Data, too.