Using WhatsApp messages as evidence in South Africa
For a maintenance claim, a protection order, a CCMA referral or a civil case, a clean numbered transcript of the whole chat is easier for everyone to work with than a folder of screenshots.
Your preview
This is your real file, parsed. Pay only if the result is right.
How it works.
WhatsApp does not give you a document. On iPhone the export is a ZIP file, and on Android it is a text file with any media sent alongside it. Getting that out of the app is the part most people get stuck on, so that is step one.
Export from WhatsApp
On iPhone, open the chat, tap the contact or group name, then Export Chat. On Android, open the chat and tap More options, More, Export chat. Choose Attach Media on iPhone or Include media on Android if you want the photos, or Without Media for a much smaller file. Send it to yourself.
Drop the file in
Upload the ZIP as WhatsApp made it. Do not unzip it first. If Android gave you a .txt with the photos as separate files, put them in one zip together, because this takes one file. You will see the participants, the message count and the real formatting straight away, for free.
Check it, then pay
If the names, dates and layout look right, pay once and download the full PDF. If something looks wrong, close the tab and nothing is charged.
Four ways to print it.
Every sample below is page one of a real PDF, made from the same sample as the one above by the same code that makes your file. Pick a style when you preview, and change it as often as you like.
The law in one paragraph
Section 15 of the Electronic Communications and Transactions Act 25 of 2002 says the rules of evidence must not be used to refuse a data message just because it is a data message. That is a starting point, not a free pass. South African courts have said electronic evidence still has to be shown to be authentic, and anything in a message that is hearsay still has to meet the Law of Evidence Amendment Act. In practice someone usually explains under oath where the messages came from, and the phone or the original export may be asked for.
This is general information, not legal advice. If your case depends on the messages, speak to an attorney, Legal Aid South Africa, or the clerk of the court.
How to prepare the messages
- Export the whole chat from the phone the messages are on. Do not edit or delete anything first.
- Keep that export file safe and unchanged. It is your original.
- Upload it here. The Formal style numbers every message and prints the date and time beside each one.
- Print copies for the court, the other party and yourself, or add it to an evidence pack with your other documents.
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Questions, answered.
Can I use WhatsApp messages at the CCMA?
Can I use them for a protection order?
Is the transcript certified?
What does it cost in rand?
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