WhatsApp Privacy Update – Now You can Hide When You’re Online

Recent announcements from WhatsApp regarding privacy updates have caused quite a stir. There are also features that allow users to be able to check their messages within the app without others being aware of it.

As a result of the new security updates, users will have more control over the conversations they have with other people.

In addition to its global user base exceeding 2 billion, WhatsApp is owned by Meta, the parent company of Facebook. Here’s what the CEO Mark Zuckerberg stated:-

“You can expect that the company will continually develop new methods for protecting your messages and ensuring that they remain as private and secure as face-to-face conversations.”

Privacy protection involves more than just ensuring your personal information is protected. With WhatsApp’s evolution, more and more privacy protection features have been added, including:-

Disappearing messages
End-to-end encrypted backups
2-step verification
Ability to block
Report unwanted chats

As a result of its last year’s changes to its terms of service, WhatsApp, however, was subjected to an enormous amount of scrutiny and criticism.

New Privacy Features

A number of additional layers of privacy protection will be provided by these new features. The following features have been added as part of the new privacy enhancements:-

Leave Groups Silently: Now, when you decide to leave a group, instead of notifying the entire group, only the administrator of that group will be notified.
Choose Who Can See When You’re Online: It is extremely important for you to keep your online presence private. WhatsApp includes a new feature that allows you to choose who can see your online status and who cannot.
Screenshot Blocking For View Once Messages: View Once messages can now be blocked from being screenshotted for an additional layer of security.

Besides encouraging users to let them know what they would like to see built in the future, WhatsApp also looks forward to hearing from you.

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Guru Baran

Gurubaran is a co-founder of Cyber Security News and GBHackers On Security. He has 10+ years of experience as a Security Consultant, Editor, and Analyst in cybersecurity, technology, and communications.