Confirm it is expiry
Expiry usually blocks the outdated app and may still let you open backup or About. A ban logs you out, shows a countdown, or tells you to use official WhatsApp. If you can still read a version number, write it down before you install anything new.
Open Settings → About if the app allows it. If the app closes before About opens, use the version you remember and the APK filename still in Downloads. How to read the GB WhatsApp version when About will not open is the fallback when the screen closes immediately.
What to do next
- Back up or export while any menu still works. An expired build can lose that menu after you force an update.
- Install a current build of the same app, not a random fork with a similar icon.
- If Android refuses the new file, stop and fix the installer error. Do not delete the old app first.
When the newer file will not install over the expired one, that is a GB WhatsApp update that Android will not install. Signature clashes and broken downloads are why. Keep the expired app until a backup exists.
Do not treat it as a ban
Downloading another “expired fix” from an unknown page does not refresh the number. If the screen is a logout that demands the official app, you are not looking at an old version number. Stop requesting SMS codes and follow the wording on that banner.