Privacy control is one reason that has led many users over the years, some very notable, switch from WhatsApp to other instant messaging services for smartphones. And yes, it’s true that for several years Meta seems to be taking this aspect of their service more seriously, adding new features in this regard from time to time, which is a clear sign that they are aware of the influx of users. due to the widespread perception that WhatsApp is a less secure service than other services such as Telegram and Signal.

So, while we only knew about the news in this regard a few weeks ago, today WABetaInfo tells us another news, this one is currently in the development phase, but it is expected to reach all the platforms where the service is present. And it’s also about a feature that has been requested by users for a long timeso it’s surprising that the company didn’t decide to start working on it until now.

This novelty, which still does not have a planned arrival date (at least public, of course), will allow you to hide our online status. And so, although it is already possible to hide the time/date of our last connection for quite a long time, the indicator that we are connected at that moment is still quite indiscreet, because it allows anyone to know, at some point. moment if we are connected to WhatsApp.

As you can see in the image above, this function will allow us to choose from four options, the same with which we can share our last connection: everyone, your contacts, your contacts, but with exceptions and no one. Of course, if we want to make a selective adjustment of which contacts will be able to see if we are online, at least in the current state of the feature, their list will have to be the same as the one we use to share our last connection.

Personally, I think it’s a great success. As I indicated at the beginning the demand for solutions that better protect our privacy is a growing trend, and one of the reasons why WhatsApp has seen many users leave. Any progress in this direction is a step in the right direction. Of course, this does not necessarily mean that the service will restore lost users for this reason, but at the very least it can mean that there will be no “lows” for this reason in the future.