On-Device Databases: Your Local Chat History

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While WhatsApp's servers are transient for message content, your complete chat history, including messages and media, is primarily stored on your device's local storage.

SQLite Databases: On Android devices, WhatsApp typically uses SQLite databases to store your chat history. These are files (msgstore.db for messages, wa.db for contacts, etc.) stored in the WhatsApp folder on your device's internal storage or SD card. On iOS, the data is stored in the app's sandboxed directory, usually using Core Data or SQLite as well.

Encryption on Device (Partial): While the messages themselves were sent and received slovenia phone number list with end-to-end encryption, the local database on your device is not always encrypted by default by WhatsApp itself.
On Android, the msgstore.db file is typically encrypted using a simple encryption scheme (like AES-256 in CBC mode, with the key derived from the phone's IMEI or a simple hardcoded string in older versions, but now more securely linked to your account). This means that if someone gains physical access to your unrooted Android phone and the necessary keys (which are also on the device, though harder to extract), they could potentially decrypt your local WhatsApp database.
On iOS, the data is protected by Apple's device-level encryption if you have a passcode set. WhatsApp uses iOS's data protection APIs.
Media Storage: Media files (images, videos, audio) are stored in separate folders within the WhatsApp directory on your device's storage.