The GAA is encouraging clubs to stop using WhatsApp groups to communicate.

It is in relation to concerns around data protection and consent.

The sports body is worried about people being added to the groups without clear consent.

The GAA is planning on setting up its own messaging service.

As every GAA club processes their member's data, they fall under the remit of General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) legislation.

GAA data protection officer Kelly Cunningham told Newstalk Breakfast why there are concerns with WhatsApp.

"If a club basically sets up a fundraising group on WhatsApp, there could be about 100 people in that WhatsApp group within the club.

"Fifty or 60 may not know each other, may not have each other's numbers.

"And then suddenly once the club puts them all into the same WhatsApp group they have their phone numbers, their name and their photograph shared with everybody else in the group without ever giving their consent to do so".

"There are another few issues with WhatsApp as well: so if there was group set up and an individual puts unsuitable material into a group, and then exits the group, the club has no authority to be able to remove that material afterwards".

Solicitor Sarah Kieran says the law about the issue is not clear.

"This is a new regime that people are quite weary of, and we are still waiting for the Data Protection Commissioner to come out with findings in relation to data breaches.

"So I think we need a bit more information about that".

More than one billion people in over 180 countries use WhatsApp, according to the Facebook-owned company.