Insights

Clara Westbrook speaks to BBC Radio 5 Live

17 August 2026

5 minutes

Partner, Head of Privacy

Overview

“Don’t worry, the messages delete after 90 days.”

If you’ve ever heard (or said) that, you might want to listen to Clara Westbrook’s appearance on BBC Radio 5 Live on the Naga Munchetty show with Emma Vardy.

She spoke about using WhatsApp for work and what happens when your messages auto‑delete. The conversation dug into the recent WhatsApp police auto‑deletion case and the Met’s 90‑day deletion policy, including:

How disappearing messages actually work in practice
Why “if it’s gone from WhatsApp, it’s gone forever” is a myth
The tension between privacy, accountability, and evidence retention
Whether WhatsApp is a useful tool or a compliance liability for organisations

Listen to Clara’s interview at 1:46 here on the BBC Sounds website.

Written By

Clara Westbrook

Partner, Head of Privacy

+44 (0)7976 939016 clara.westbrook@arbor.law Connect on LinkedIn

I am Head of Privacy at Arbor Law and have more than 20 years’ experience advising businesses on European and English Data Protection law. I help clients navigate this complex area of law in an accessible and commercial way, enabling them to achieve their business objectives in compliance with data protection law. Before Arbor I was a Director in the International Privacy Center of Expertise at WarnerBros Discovery. Prior to this, my roles include European Data Protection Counsel at Yum! Brands, Senior Data Protection Counsel at Richemont and founder of a data protection consultancy. I also won a scholarship from Lincoln’s Inn for a three month stage at the European Court of Justice in Luxembourg.

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