# Cross-Channel Identity

> Recognize the same customer across WhatsApp, Telegram, email and more — and unify them into one profile.

Source: https://waslo.io/docs/cross-channel-identity · Last updated: 2026-10-12

## The problem it solves

The same customer might message you on WhatsApp today and Telegram next week. Each channel uses a different identifier (phone number, chat ID, email address), so without help they'd become two separate contacts with two separate histories — and your AI would treat a returning customer like a stranger.

**Cross-Channel Identity** detects when two contacts are probably the same person — same phone number, same email, or same full name — and unifies them into one profile with one conversation history.

## Three modes — you pick the level of automation

Open **Settings → Organization → Cross-channel identity**:

| Mode | Behavior |
|---|---|
| **Off** (default) | Nothing is detected. Best when several people share one phone or email — a family business, a shared office line. |
| **Suggest matches** | When a likely match appears, you get a card on the **Leads** page showing both contacts side by side. One click to merge, one click to dismiss. |
| **Auto-merge verified matches** | Contacts that reached you from the *same* phone number or email address — as the channel itself reports it — merge automatically. A number or email a customer only typed or mentioned, and name-only matches, wait for your confirmation: anyone can type someone else's number. |

## How matching works

- **Same phone** — the strongest signal. Waslo compares numbers intelligently, so `+9715xxxxxxx` and `05xxxxxxx` still match.
- **Same email** — from the contact's details, or an email the AI confidently learned in conversation ("send the invoice to sara@…").
- **Same name** — the weakest signal, used only for full names (at least two words). It only ever produces a *suggestion*, never an automatic merge.

When you dismiss a suggestion with **"Not the same person"**, that pair is remembered forever and never suggested again.

## What merging does

- The newer contact merges **into** the older one — the older profile keeps the full history.
- All conversations from both contacts appear under one profile, each still on its original channel.
- Replies always go out on the channel the customer wrote from.
- The AI uses the unified history silently — it will never tell a customer "I saw you messaged us on Instagram." The knowledge shows in reply quality, not in announcements.

## Undoing a merge

Merges are reversible. Open the merged contact in the **Inbox** and look at the contact panel beside the conversation — merged identities appear as a **Linked identities** row, each with an **Unmerge** button. Unmerging restores the contact as its own profile, and that pair won't auto-merge again.