Mark Zuckerberg, CEO of Meta, has announced new privacy features for WhatsApp that will be introduced in a new update to the popular messaging app, such as leaving groups silently and hiding online status.

In a post posted to Facebook, Zuckerberg confirmed that WhatsApp will now allow users to determine who can and cannot see their online status – everyone, their contacts, their contacts, but with some exceptions, or no one. It’s worth remembering that since December last year, the app started hiding online status by default for those not in the user’s contact list, but with the new app update, users will have more control over this.

In a Facebook post, Zuckerberg confirmed two other privacy-related WhatsApp news. The first of these is support for locking a screenshot for messages that should only be viewed once. Unlike messages that are automatically deleted after a certain amount of time, messages that should only be viewed once are deleted immediately after viewing. Screenshot lock for this message type can be useful in certain scenarios.

Finally, another novelty mentioned by Zuckerberg is support for auto-leaving a group. Currently, when a user leaves a group, all members present are notified. This may raise questions about the reason for leaving the group. With the new WhatsApp update, users will now be able to leave groups without notifying other members. This feature has already been tested in the beta version of the app, but it has only now been confirmed that it will be rolled out to all users.

Playback/Purpose

Zuckerberg’s post didn’t mention exactly when WhatsApp’s update with these new privacy features would be available to users, but we won’t have to wait long for that.

Via: The Verge, Neowin.net Source: Mark Zuckerberg (Facebook)

…..

Are you thinking about buying a product online? Discover the Save the Connected World extension for Google Chrome. It’s free and offers you price comparisons at major stores and coupons so you can always buy at the best price. Download now.