WhatsApp Desktop could allow hackers to alter text messages

297

If you’re using WhatsApp Desktop, Facebook (who owns Whatsapp) as advised users to update their program to the latest version in order to patch a potentially threatening bug.

A find by Gal Weizman suggests that a flaw exists in an older build of the software that allows attackers to remotely gain access to your chats, read them and even alter the texts sent. The flaw was possible due to WhatsApp using a software called Electron, which Ars Technica notes having prior issues too.

With the loophole, hackers can also create bogus preview banners for URL links that may lead to predatory sites. Plus, the attackers could run a JavaScript code within the WhatsApp Desktop app and gain access to local files too – scary.

If your current build is on version 0.3.9309 and earlier or users who’ve paired the desktop app with WhatsApp for iPhone older than 2.20.10; then you will need to update your program immediately. If you haven’t received a prompt for the update, or aren’t able to perform it – re-install the program, and it should install the latest version, which should be 0.4.315 on Windows.

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WhatsApp launches new feature called Disappearing Messages

835

After testing for over a year,
WhatsApp
 finally made its new feature, Disappearing Messages, available to the public.

Enable it manually for each chat

The new feature isn’t automatically enabled, so if you’d like to have your messages disappear after awhile, you’ll need to set it manually. You’ll also need to enable the feature for each individual chats which can be found when you tap on the contact/group’s name.

Disappearing Messages fixed at a 7-day period

Unlike Telegram where users can adjust the duration of disappearing messages, WhatsApp’s new feature makes messages disappear after 7 days. Individual chats can be controlled by either party while group chats are controlled by the admins.

Messages can still be saved despite new feature

However,
WhatsApp
 also warned users that they should “only use disappearing messages with trusted individuals.” For example, other parties can still forward, screenshot or copy the disappearing messages before it’s gone. Photos can also be saved if users turn on their auto-download in settings.

WhatsApp
 also mentioned that the message preview will remain even after 7-day period if the message is not opened and if forwarded, the disappearing message will not be removed in the forwarded chat.

Disappearing Messages
whatsapp


WhatsApp down – users unable to send and receive images and videos

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WhatsApp is currently facing issues with sending and receiving media, users report. The issue has persisted for over an hour and appears to have hit users across the globe.

If you’re unable to send images, videos, and most importantly. GIFs, know that you’re not the only one – Downdetector has detected a sudden spike in the past hour; most of the issue stem from this issue.

You’re still able to send texts as usual, but sending media files will prompt the circle of death – or at least the WhatsApp equivalent of it. At the time of writing, WhatsApp has yet to release a statement, but you can expect to hear from them soon.

We won’t know how long to wait for a fix, so until then, use Telegram – that seems to work fine.

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WhatsApp is finally bringing face unlock to Android phones

588

While iOS users are already enjoying the
face unlock feature on WhatsApp
, the messaging app is only introducing it to Android users.

Face unlock finally coming to Android users

Image credit: WABetaInfo

WhatsApp has previously introduced fingerprint unlock as an extra step to protect your WhatsApp conversations, but it’s not surprising that some would rather use face unlock instead. What was made available to iOS users months ago is now finally going to be brought over to Android users too.

Join group calls later

That being said, the new feature will not be replacing other authentication methods — it’ll be an addition to the existing ones. There’s also another
update
 that will be coming in which WhatsApp will allow users to join group calls that they’ve initially missed.

As of now, WhatsApp hasn’t confirmed or announced any dates for the upcoming features.

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WhatsApp launches fact-checking service in Italy to counter fake news about COVID-19

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So
 you know how the older generation are always sharing ‘news’ on WhatsApp without fact-checking them first? Yeah, we know the struggle – and apparently so does Italy; but of course, the situation there is much more dire.

Well, to counteract this, Facebook Inc. (who owns WhatsApp) has launched a service in the country to verify any information that passes through the chatting app. The company is working with Facta, an Italian fact-checking service to analyze all content being circulated by the app’s users.

Being the
epicentre
 of the outbreak in Europe with 83,000 positive cases and almost 14,000 thousand deaths, Italy is experiencing one of the worst cases of the pandemic to date. The local government had ordered a lockdown across the nation and that has seen the rise of the usage of WhatsApp.

Reuters reports that the rise in traffic also generates an increase of hoaxes, created by people who’re either misinformed or intentionally trying to stir the pot. With this new fact-checking measure, people can send content to this service to be analyzed and have whatever it is debunked.

 Although the outbreak isn’t as bad in Malaysia, WhatsApp hoaxes and fake news are rife and a similar service would do us a world of good right now – heck, it would be good even after things return to normal.

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WhatsApp feature successfully reduces spread of misinformation by 70%

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After limiting viral messages from being forwarded to many chats at one time, WhatsApp has seen a 70% drop in the spread of these messages in less than a month.

The limitation basically prevents anyone from forwarding a message, that was previously shared five times already, from re-sharing it again to more than one chat, at one go. Meaning, to share a viral message, you’d have to hit that forward button again and again for every chat or group you want to share it with.

Image credit: Daily Mail

This was a move to put hinder the spread of COVID-19 misinformation through WhatsApp – you know, the kind that starts with “a colleague of mind sent me this”, or “my aunt’s niece got this information from a friend in the government”, which is then followed by bogus claims of what the virus is and can do.

As it turns out, the sheer amount of work that is required to share something more than once was too much for many, hence why we see the drop in the spread of viral messages. Looking forward, this is a feature that will mostly like stick since spreading false information has been going on long before the pandemic, and will likely continue to spread after the matter.

Another way to curb the spread of misinformation is to fact-check your messages – simply copy and paste the text into a
WhatsApp
 fact-checking
bot
, that was developed by the
World
 Health Organization, to get your info verified.

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WhatsApp finally lets you do screen sharing in video calls

5.3K

If you have been using WhatsApp for conference calls and want to present something on screen, you will be happy to learn that it has been updated to support screen sharing, which you can do it from your phone or the WhatsApp desktop app.

The feature can be easily accessed when you perform a video call on WhatsApp, where you will only need to press a button on the video call screen, choose the specific app or entire display to share to your caller, it will also work in landscape in case you need more screen estate on your phone.

While you might be disappointed not to see that feature even after you recently update your WhatsApp, the feature is still being rolled out globally to users so you will just need to exercise some patience.

One advantage that WhatsApp has other video conference apps is unlimited time limits in conference calls without needing a paid subscription, though it still lacks features such as breakout rooms and whiteboard interactions, having screen sharing is definitely a big win for people who depends on the platform for conference calls.

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WhatsApp for Android finally gets fingerprint authentication feature

344

WhatsApp finally introduced fingerprint unlock for Android devices, allowing them to add fingerprint authentication when they open WhatsApp for extra security.

This feature has been available for iOS users back in February, whereby iPhone users can use either their Touch IDs or Face IDs to unlock WhatsApp on their iPhones. Just like WhatsApp for iOS, the app on Android will also allow you to choose the duration before the app locks itself.

WhatsApp for iOS

Aside from that, you can also choose to show/hide content in notifications. For those who prefer extra security, you should definitely choose to hide content so that others can preview your text content via the notification bar. According to
Cnet
, you’ll also be able to answer WhatsApp calls despite it being locked.

Perhaps WhatsApp will introduce face unlock for Android users in the future, but for now, you should update your app to get the new feature.

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WhatsApp for Android to introduce fingerprint authentication soon

329

WhatsApp will soon be rolling out a new authentication feature, which comes in the form of fingerprint lock.

According to WABetaInfo, the new feature is not available yet due to development reasons and the feature is still in need of more improvements before it is enabled for everyone.

According to the website, besides working on Face ID and Touch ID features on iOS, WhatsApp has finally took the initiative to work on the new authentication feature on Android which uses user’s fingerprint to unlock their WhatsApp.

By enabling the fingerprint lock feature on WhatsApp, the app will be completely protected, as the user will need to authenticate their identity in order to open the WhatsApp app.

This feature is in an alpha stage of development and it will be available in future for any Android phones that uses Android Marshmallow (or newer) and a fingerprint sensor.

Users would need to register their fingerprint on their device to use the feature. But if their fingerprint sensor or scanner is broken, they could still use other device credentials such as a PIN code to unlock the app.

To ensure the app is fully secure and protected, users would have to authenticate their identity even from the app icon or even from the notification bar.

With the Face ID, Touch ID and fingerprint lock feature all still being monitored and under development for added improvements, there is still no confirmation on when will these features be available.

Till then, we shall wait for WhatsApp to announce the good news, hopefully soon.

For more information, click
here
.

whatsapp


Whatsapp gets document sharing feature

361

Whatsapp has began to rollout updates for both Android and iOS platform to some users today.

The Whatsapp for Android update now includes document sharing support, however limited only to PDF files. The feature allows you to share PDF documents to your friends in Whatsapp. Tapping on the attachment button will show a new “Document” option, which then brings you to your file manager. You are also able to share documents stored in other storage apps, such as Dropbox and Google Drive.

Whatsapp for the iPhone has also received the document sharing support update, and a new option for the somewhat rigid OS which now allows you to share pictures and videos from other apps on your iPhone. Also included is a newly improved design for browsing photos and videos, and a pinch to zoom feature while playing videos.

Do check in to your Play Store or App Store for updates, but do note that the updates are still in the midst of rolling out. Till then stay tuned and be patient!

Source:
FoneArena

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WhatsApp’s new group call limit supports up to 8 participants

337

Just a week ago, we received news that WhatsApp will be expanding the number of participants allowed in a group call. Now, the app has doubled the amount so you can have up to 8 participants in one group call.

WhatsApp revealed that the pandemic has increased the usage of WhatsApp among consumers, meaning that many have turned to messaging apps to connect with others. That’s why WhatsApp expanded its participant limits in its group calls which are also protected with end-to-end encryption.

WhatsApp is also available on Portal, the Facebook device that was created specifically for smart video calling with built-in Alexa support. There are a few Portal devices — Portal TV, Portal Mini, Portal and Portal+ — and basically these devices are made for video calling and support Messenger and WhatsApp.

To enjoy WhatsApp’s new participant limit, make sure you update the app to its latest version which is already available on iPhone and Android devices.

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WhatsApp has plans to introduce self-destructing messages

303

WhatsApp may be the more popular messaging app, but it does not have as many features as Telegram. Luckily for WhatsApp users, one feature found in Telegram seems to be coming to the platform soon — self-destructing messages.

In WhatsApp’s latest Android beta, there’s a Delete Messages feature that will supposedly delete messages in a conversation on its own. However, this is only applicable to individual chats, not group chats.
WABetaInfo
 discovered that users will be able to choose how long the messages can be seen before they’re automatically deleted. This ranges from an hour to up to one year. That being said, it’s still not as efficient as the feature on Telegram.

Telegram’s Secret Chat feature allows its users to send self-destructing messages that range from one second up to a week. This will be easier for users to discuss private stuff without leaving traces while making it harder for the other party to screenshot the conversation.

Anyways, WhatsApp users will need to be patient if they’re interested in this feature. It’s only found in the beta version of the app, so there’s no telling when it’ll be available on its public app.

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WhatsApp internal beta allows users to recall sent messages

321

We all have those instances whereby we regret sending a text, or accidentally sending a text to the wrong person. The consequences can be damaging, especially when gossip is involved. While this feature has long been rumored, it looks like we can finally recall sent messages on WhatsApp.

According to WABetaInfo, the feature that recalls messages is currently being tested internally on a beta version of WhatsApp. The image above shows what recipients see on their notification shade when you recall messages from them. Instead of showing the particular message(s), the notification will show “This message was deleted”. This feature definitely comes in really handy as most of us are bound to have a blunder or two every once in a while, ranging from sending texts to the wrong people, regretted messages and inappropriate typo’s.

This feature isn’t new to some other messaging apps such as Skype, but the rollout of the said feature to public WhatsApp users hasn’t been known so far. We will definitely have to wait this out a little longer before we can begin recalling sent text messages on the world’s most popular messaging app. What do you think?

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WhatsApp introduces new Private Reply feature for group chats

539

WhatsApp have release a new update for the Android Beta app that brings a new feature called “Private Reply”. The new feature allows WhatsApp user to reply privately to a particular participant directly in a group chat, without the knowledge of the other participants who are in the same group chat. This feature is now available for Android users with beta version 2.18.355, but it has been reported that the new update appears to come with a few bugs which causes the app to crash when user delete media files from a group.

In order to use the “Private Reply” function, just tap on the message of the sender of whom you’d like to reply in private, then tap onto the three dotted menu on the top right corner of the app and select the private reply option. Once you choose the option, the selected message will open privately in the chat window of the sender in the form of a reply thread.

To download the latest WhatsApp beta on your Android device, you need to be a part of the official Google Play beta programme. Alternatively, you can download its APK file directly from APK Mirror.

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Play voice messages directly from notifications on latest WhatsApp update for iOS

472

WhatsApp – its as reliable as they come. Part of why it’s so widely used across the globe is due to the developers’ constant efforts to improve the app, making it better and easier to use in every update.

As we welcome iOS 13 to iPhones, it appears WhatsApp will be making their mark in the new OS with a few interesting changes to the app. One of which is playing voice messages directly from the notifications tray, by long pressing the message.

Also in the new update is a feature a doodle feature for users to quickly edit and send back an image or video within a chat. Speaking of images and videos, you can also edit the font styles in the WhatsApp camera UI.

Steering away from the practicality side of things, memoji can now be sent as stickers, in case the existing ones aren’t sassy enough for you.

Really interesting ease-of-life updates from WhatsApp, but no word on when we can expect some of these features to arrive on Android yet. In any case, keep an eye out for the latest WhatsApp updates from the App Store or Play Store.

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WhatsApp is banning users who are in groups with suspicious names

608

WhatsApp has been banning users in groups with suspicious names and nobody knows the exact reason why.

WhatsApp users have been expressing their confusion in getting banned from the popular messaging platform. It was then discovered that WhatsApp has started banning groups with inappropriate or malicious names, and this includes all the members in the group.

A reddit user called
PiTiXX
 posted on the platform claiming he was banned because his friend renamed the group to “child porn”. The user has then changed his number to avoid ban but unfortunately, he couldn’t recover the old data of his previous number.

Apparently, another
reddit user
 was also banned from WhatsApp due to his university group name being changed to “Childs Pornography”, resulting in the entire group being banned. They even contacted support that said they violated the rules. However, this user’s account was recovered a week later.

WaBetaInfo
 also said that old groups or groups with high number of participants are more likely to be affected. Users can also take precautionary steps if they’re the group admins by only restricting the ability to edit group info to only the admins.

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Whatsapp is extending the Delete Message window to one hour

418

The major issue with WhatsApp back in the day was that it did not allow you to delete your message if you accidentally sent one that you did not want too or accidentally sent it to the wrong person. A few months back, WhatsApp allowed you to delete the message after a few minutes of sending it, but now you can delete the message up to an hour of sending it.

In a recent twitter post by WABetaInfo, they twitted that the new update will bring about some bug fixes and will increase the “Delete for everyone” limit to 1 hour, 8 minutes and 16 seconds. That might be a very odd choice of timing but if you take a look at a programmer’s perspective, it translates to 4,096 seconds which is an achieved by the formula of 2 to the power of 12. If you take a look at the other numbers in the formula (128, 256, 512) you might see some familiarity there.

A new WhatsApp for iOS update (2.18.31) is available on AppStore.
It is a bug fixes update, but it has the new “Delete for everyone” limit, that’s 1 hour, 8 minutes and 16 seconds.

— WABetaInfo (@WABetaInfo)
March 8, 2018

They did not give an explination of why they extended the delete message window but for those of you that want it, its there now. However, the update is only coming to the iOS first and there is no mention of the Androud update timeframe.

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WhatsApp is working on encryption feature for cloud backups

862

WhatsApp is launching a beta version of its app that introduces encryption on users’ cloud saves be it on Google Drive or the iCloud.

The feature, of course, protects your chat history and media from unauthorized access. Users who opt in to try out the beta will have to set a password that protects backups – users will be required to key in that password every time they want to restore their chats.

WABetainfo
reports that your password is private and not even WhatsApp, Facebook, Google, or Apple will have access to it. The downside to this is that if you forget your password, WhatsApp cannot help you recover it.

There’s likely a way to reset your password, but there’s always a chance that your chats may be locked away behind your forgotten password in the worst-case scenario.

This news comes after reports of the company also trying out
multi-device support
, which will let you have several instances of the app running on multiple apps at one time.

These are features that have been requested by users for some time now, and we’re glad that the team over at WhatsApp are finally working on making them a reality. Stay tuned on our website for more developments on this topic.

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WhatsApp launches desktop app

351

So far, if you wanted to use WhatsApp on your computer, you’ll have to rely on the browser-based WhatsApp Web. This is no longer the case however, as WhatsApp has officially launched a desktop app for the messaging service.

For those who are used to WhatsApp Web, WhatsApp Desktop is pretty similar to it. Like WhatsApp Web, all you have to do to start using WhatsApp Desktop is to use your smartphone version of WhatsApp to scan the QR code shown on the screen. After that, you can chat with your friends as usual. Also like WhatsApp Web is the fact that the desktop app requires your phone to be constantly connected to the internet. If your phone’s WhatsApp were to be disconnected from the internet, you won’t be able to chat with your friends on the desktop app as well.

Of course, WhatsApp’s desktop app isn’t just a carbon copy of the browser service. WhatsApp Desktop comes with feautres such as native desktop notifications, better keyboard shortcuts, and much more. If you’re interested in trying out the desktop app for yourself, you can download it
here
.

Source:
WhatsApp

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WhatsApp launches end-to-end encryption for cloud backups

867

WhatsApp has rolled out its
end-to-end encryption

(E2EE) for chat backups, which greatly improves the privacy and the security of your data.

With E2EE enabled for your backups, neither WhatsApp nor Google or Apple will be able to access your data and encryption keys.

The feature works by locking your data behind a wall protected by a 64-digit encryption key or personal password – which the user will need to enter whenever they want access to their own backups.

The hardware security module (HSM) backup key vault, that allows for this layer of protection, is responsible for running verifications; and locking out threats when there are too many unsuccessful attempts to access said data.

To ensure that this service is always available even during a data center outage, WhatsApp confirms that the HSM backup key vault service will be geographically distributed across multiple data centers.

The E2EE backup service will be coming to iOS and Android devices in the coming weeks.

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WhatsApp launches View Once, a self-erasing photo and video feature for improved privacy

727

WhatsApp has been actively
working

on implementing more features to its otherwise simple chatting app – this time, they’ve finally introduced View Once, a self-erasing media feature.

View Once
 lets users send photos or videos in a chat, and make it disappear after they’ve been opened. This privacy feature is great if you want to share across sensitive information like WiFi passwords, or phone numbers to your chatting partner, without the message sticking around on your device or the cloud permanently.

WhatsApp also confirms in their blog that they no one, not even them, will be able to access these deleted media once they’re deleted.

View Once will start rolling out to users starting this week, so keep an eye out for the update on your device. You can read more about it here.

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WhatsApp lets you use QR codes to share and add contacts

329

Now aside from the Private Reply feature and the Stickers feature that WhatsApp has recently released, the app is going to introduce two new features; Add Contacts and Share Contact Info via QR.

Image credit : WABetaInfo

Firstly, the new update in WhatsApp will revamp the Add Contacts feature by allowing users to add contacts quicker than before, where they can select the country of the new contact and WhatsApp will automatically insert the country code before users insert the phone number of the new contact. WhatsApp will also automatically identify whether the new contact is a WhatsApp user, so that users will know whether the contact can be reached within the app.

The second new feature is the ability to share your own contact or add others through the QR code system. This is similar to Instagram’s Nametag feature, Snapchat’s Snapcode and also WeChat’s QR code. By scanning the WhatsApp QR code, the app will automatically fill in all the information provided in user’s address book.

Image credit : WABetaInfo

The QR code can also be revoked when users first generate their QR codes and it could be done countless of times, ensuring that previous QR codes are marked as expired codes. This is especially useful for business users who can share their contacts online, as they can also choose to revoke the code if they decided to change their numbers or stop doing their businesses.

While the Add Contact feature is not yet available on both iOS and Android devices, the QR code feature is already spotted in iOS devices, and according to WABetaInfo, it will be available on Android too.

Add contacts
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WhatsApp looks set to feature their own dark mode soon

395

The mobile world has been hit with an unexpected turn of events in the recent month – popular apps such as Facebook Messenger, Google Chrome, Opera have been graced with a little feature called dark mode. Not only does it look cool, its supposedly good for your eyes and it helps reduce battery drain – but we like it mostly because it looks cool.

According to 9to5Google, popular messaging app WhatsApp may also roll out their own dark mode too! For what it offers in reliability and lightweight nature, it lacks in any aesthetic flair; especially when you compare to its counterparts Line and WeChat.

Image credit: 9to5Google

The report says that the feature was uncovered in a beta update of the app. WhatsApp’s dark mode isn’t completely black like on Reddit’s AMOLED night mode; but rather dark grey like – Android Police says that the color is #111111 in hex code.

It also needs to be mentioned that the beta update is also available for iOS systems and it comes with dark mode too. Although trivial in nature, we’re excited for the official rollout of the feature so our night-time texting habits won’t hurt our eyes so much.

android
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WhatsApp may be developing a system that lets businesses talk directly to users

370

Remember back in the days when WhatsApp required an annual subscription fee in order for you to use the service? Well, the company stopped asking for said subscription fee when Facebook purchased it. Cool though it may be to the end user, WhatsApp still needs a way to source some revenue of its own, and it appears that the company may be working on a system that would rope companies to the fold.

According to a report by Reuters, it appears that WhatsApp is currently testing out a system that would let businesses contact WhatsApp users directly. Currently, the tests are being conducted by a handful of companies that are part of the Y Combinator startup incubator. One of the ways that WhatsApp could earn revenue from such a system is by charging businesses a fee in order for them to contact customers on WhatsApp.

While this may sound like an awful idea to users, the report also states that WhatsApp is also working carefully to avoid problems that may stem from this system, with the most obvious problem being spam. WhatsApp is also reportedly surveying users about the extent to which they interact with businesses on the chat platform, and whether or not they have received spam from the service.

It is still too early to tell if WhatsApp would finalize this system as their main source of revenue. However, if the implementation is wildly off the mark, the consequences could be disastrous for WhatsApp.

Source:
Reuters

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WhatsApp may finally let users send uncompressed images

1.2K

It’s about time – WhatsApp is apparently planning to roll out a feature that will finally allow users to send uncompressed images in a chat.

Currently, the one of the only ways to do this is to send the image as a document file – the receiver has to first download the file, instead of viewing it right on the app itself.

A report by
WABetaInfo
claims that the new feature is currently in beta and it gives users the option to choose between options like ‘Auto (Recommended) which lets WhatsApp decide on the quality of the photo depending on the available bandwidth, ‘Best Quality’ which supposedly does away with the compression, but we’re not sure to what extent, and ‘Data Saver’ which will compress the image to save bandwidth.

This feature has been a mainstay on WhatsApp’s direct competitors Telegram, and it’s one of the many reasons why the latter has a relatively large number of users today.

There’s no word on when the update will be rolled out officially, but we’ll keep you updated when we get more information.

whatsapp


WhatsApp may introduce a feature to disable screenshots of chats

381

WhatsApp may soon allow users to block ability to screenshot chats in an upcoming update to the popular chatting app.

The folks over at WABetaInfo spotted the feature in an early build of the update, and they claim that its currently still in the works. The update will come with the introduction of biometric authentication, Although not much has been said on this feature, our best guess is that users can lock certain chats with biometric locks.

This plays into the app’s ability to block screenshots by disabling anyone within the chat to screenshot when biometric authentication is enabled for it. For a chat that isn’t secured by the lock, you’re free to screenshot away.

According to reports, the added security won’t hinder users from replying or answering via notifications by adding layers of steps to perform that task.

This feature is reportedly only available for Android systems, but iOS devices can expect the feature to be available soon too. There’s no news yet on when the update will roll out to the masses, but we welcome this change, which we think is especially useful for enterprise-centric group chats allowing members more freedom to share classified information without fear of it leaking.

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WhatsApp might limit creating multiple groups and adding multiple participants at once

268

WhatsApp has been dealing with fake news issue recently, and MySmartPrice has recently found that WhatsApp may be introducing new features within the app to counter all the problems.

According to the teardown of the latest WhatsApp APK file version 2.18.367, MySmartPrice found that WhatsApp might be limiting its users from creating too many groups or adding too many contacts into groups out of a sudden. This means users will only be allowed a certain number of contacts to be added into a group at a time. If they’ve exceeded the limit, they’ll have to wait for an amount of time before they’re allowed to add more contacts into the same group.

Image credit: MySmartPrice

This is also similar for creating groups. The teardown suggests that the new feature will stop users from creating multiple groups at once, and they’ll need some time before they’re allowed to continue creating groups. This is particularly useful in reducing spam and the spread of fake news, and it will barely affect normal WhatsApp users.

The feature will probably be added to WhatsApp in the near future, reducing if not putting an end to the fake news and spam issues. But then again, there is no absolute guarantee that the feature will be introduced since it’s not official yet.

whatsapp
WhatsApp group


You can use WhatsApp on multiple devices at one time soon – end-to-end encryption to improve too

451

According to WABetaInfo, WhatsApp is confirmed to be developing multi-platform support for the app that allows a single phone number to be accessed on multiple devices at the same time.

Currently, the only thing close to this would be WhatsApp web which requires you to link your phone to your PC – should your phone lose its connection to the internet, WhatsApp Web ceases to receive messages as well.

It’s no longer a rumor, it’s confirmed.
 You will be able to use your WhatsApp account on a lot of devices! ✅

It includes WhatsApp for Windows (UWP, when available), so you can use WhatsApp on your PC if your phone has no connection.
 iPhone/Android and iPadOS included 😊
https://t.co/PgNZTnOxlj

— WABetaInfo (@WABetaInfo)
July 29, 2019

This new development comes from the folks over at WABetaInfo who dug around the iOS 2.19.80.16 beta patch. It was a rumour at the beginning, but they’ve announced on the same day that the development is indeed confirmed.

According to the report, messages will be able to sync across devices as they’ll be stored on servers – and to bolster security, WhatsApp is also improving end-to-end encryption, despite your chats now being stored in servers.

This is not to be confused with chat backups which are stored on Google Drive for Android and iCloud for iOS – chat backups are essentially that, they’re restore points for your conversations and cannot be officially transferred from one OS to another (you can always use third-party programs to do that).

The beta mentions the update for iOS, but it’s likely that Android will receive it too. Plus, there is not ETA as of now on when the feature will be completed and be rolled out to devices – but this is good news if WhatsApp can bolster security.

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WhatsApp’s new multi-device feature doesn’t require your phone anymore

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We’re all too familiar with using WhatsApp on our desktop; whether it’s the web version or the app itself, you’ll always need your phone to be connected. Well, Facebook finally introduced a solution to that — multi-device capability.

According to Facebook’s
blog post
, “With this new capability, you can now use WhatsApp on your phone and up to four other non-phone devices simultaneously — even if your phone battery is dead.”

WhatsApp is finally okay with your phone running out of juice

This means using
WhatsApp
 on the web or your laptops will no longer require you to have a powered-on phone. Facebook also promises the same level of privacy and security on these non-phone devices while introducing an identity key to each device so there will no longer be a need to depend on a single one — the one on your phone.

Same security, but less fuss

In addition to that, WhatsApp will have a new feature called Automatic Device Detection. This will reduce the number of identity verifications, so you’ll only need to re-verify your security code with the other user if either one of you re-register your entire account.

Multi-device beta isn’t open to all

Unfortunately, the beta for this feature is not available to everyone and is only tested on a limited number of users. For more information, read the full blog post
here
.

whatsapp


WhatsApp sets the record straight regarding new privacy policy

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WhatsApp has not given up on implementing its new privacy policy; however, the company is trying to set the record straight and explain what the change is and how it will affect users.

New privacy policy first announced in January

The privacy policy was first
announced
 on January 4, 2021; WhatsApp wrote on its
blog
 that users will have to agree to its terms and privacy policy if they want to continue using the messaging app. However, this caused a backlash which led to WhatsApp delaying its new policy.

WhatsApp is reassuring users again and again

The policy is once again delayed — this time to May 15 — so that users have more time to accept the incoming policy. WhatsApp also posted a tweet few hours back to reassure users that their privacy will not be compromised. On its blog, WhatsApp said, “We want to be clear that the policy update does not affect the privacy of your messages with friends or family in any way. The changes are related to optional business features on WhatsApp, and provides further transparency about how we collect and use data.”

Personal conversations will not be affected

WhatsApp also confirms that neither them or Facebook will get access to personal messages and calls. They also don’t have access to your shared locations, contacts; and if you’re still worried, you can also set disappearing messages.

However, the new policy will affect those who message business accounts; by using Facebook’s
hosting service
, Facebook will get some data including chats between customers and business owners for marketing purposes.

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WhatsApp now allows you to delete sent messages within 7 minutes

283

WhatsApp has long been rumored to have tested this feature, and it is now official. Ever sent an embarrassing text or sent the wrong text to the wrong person? WhatsApp now enables you to delete that sent text, as long as it is within 7 minutes.

This newly introduced feature to WhatsApp definitely will change the way we text using the world’s most widely used messaging app. According to WhatsApp, it will be particularly useful if you have sent the wrong text to the wrong chat or made a mistake in the text, but we know it is more than just that.

To make use of that feature, you will need to have the latest version of WhatsApp on both iOS or Android. The recipient has to be using the latest version of the app as well, otherwise the feature might not work. All you have to do is hold the text you intend to delete, tap on the trashcan icon above, and you will receive a prompt on whether you would like to delete the text for everyone or yourself.

Once again, bear in mind that it will only work within 7 minutes upon sending that particular text. Say goodbye to accidental and drunk texts. What do you think?

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WhatsApp now allows you to share files of any type

396

WhatsApp has now made one of its most recent beta only features official to all users. Instead of only being able to share the usual file formats like images, videos, GIFs and PDFs, you will now be able to share file types of any type on WhatsApp. This new feature is available with the latest version of WhatsApp on the Google Play Store.

With the new update, WhatsApp has also changed how pictures are being viewed when multiple images are being sent by a user simultaneously. The end user will be able to view the images in a thumbnail style gallery. Tapping on the the images will then bring out the view view of that image.

Tracking back to being able to send any file type on WhatsApp, the feature does come in really handy especially if you’re a regular WhatsApp desktop user, which means that WhatsApp can act like an instant email messenger for file attachments. The size limit for the files is pretty reasonably as well, at 100MB.

The latest update of WhatsApp should be rolling out within these couple of days. If you happen to be a beta user, you’re probably already enjoying most of these newly introduced features for a while now.

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WhatsApp now boasts its own set of emojis

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Emojis now play an important role in social media in messaging. It is a vital form of expression that complements words that are being typed out. There’s even a movie about emojis but we shall not dive into that as WhatsApp now has its own set of emojis since its birth.

WhatsApp has been borrowing Apple’s emojis since the beginning, or more like outright using the company’s collection of ever growing emojis. Over the years, companies such as Google and Samsung have also developed their own versions of emojis, and the folks at WhatsApp have finally took the initiative to make their own.

The image above shows the a bunch of WhatsApp’s new emojis that are currently available on WhatsApp beta. Of course, they still look pretty much similar to Apple’s, as straying too far from Apple’s emojis will only turn people away. It might not be WhatsApp’s best decision to make its own emojis after so long but it is definitely worth a shot.

It will be made official soon, that the world’s most popular messaging app will implement its own set of emojis to the general public. What do you think?

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WhatsApp now has 500m users

338

Messaging app WhatsApp now has 500m active users, having added 70m since announcing in February that it was being
bought by Facebook for $19bn
.

“In the last few months, we’ve grown fastest in countries like Brazil, India, Mexico, and Russia, and our users are also sharing more than 700 million photos and 100 million videos every single day,”
wrote WhatsApp chief executive Jan Koum
 in a blog post.

Koum provided more details in an interview
 with technology site Recode, claiming that WhatsApp has 48m active users in India and 45m in Brazil. “The message growth rate in Brazil — it’s not like a hockey stick, it’s like a vertical line,” he said.

He also took a potshot at rivals like Line and KakaoTalk, which have ambitions to expand globally from their strongholds in Asia.

“There’s not enough money and not enough celebrities in the world to convince people to use a shitty product,” said Koum. “People are so savvy these days. People expect a good user experience.”

WhatsApp has encountered a few gremlins on that front since the Facebook deal was announced, including a
three and a half-hour outage that week in February
 and
another early in April
, the same day it announced record figures of handling 64bn messages in a 24-hour period.

Koum was referring to what he sees as “bloated” apps from rivals, which are adding games, shopping, music and other features to their core messaging functions. WhatsApp has focused on text, photos and videos, with
plans to add voice calling by the summer
.

This focus has driven startling growth for WhatsApp over the last year. In April 2013,
the company had more than 200m active users
, and was processing an average of 8bn inbound (sent) and 12bn outbound (received) messages a day – the difference comes from messages sent to multiple recipients.

WhatsApp reached 250m active users
 in June 2013, then
300m in August
, when it was processing 11bn inbound and 20bn outbound messages a day, while users were sharing 325m photos a day.

By December 2013,
WhatsApp had 400m active users
, and now four months later it has 500m. At the start of April, the company tweeted that it had just
processed 20bn inbound and 44bn outbound messages
 in a 24-hour period.

In short, WhatsApp has doubled its daily message and photo counts since August 2013, while adding 200m active users in that eight-month period.

Facebook is focused on further growth following its acquisition, though: “WhatsApp is on a path to connect 1bn people,” said its chief executive Mark Zuckerberg as he announced the deal in February.

“WhatsApp is the only widely used app we’ve ever seen that have more engagement in a higher percent of people using it daily than Facebook itself,” he
added in a subsequent call with analysts
. “Internet services that reach a billion people are all incredibly valuable, and we believe WhatsApp will be as well.”

It has taken WhatsApp five years to reach 500m users, as it first launched in early 2009. Facebook took just over six years to reach a similar milestone, having launched in February 2004 before
surpassing 500m active users in July 2010
.

Zuckerberg headlined his blog post on that milestone “500 Million Stories”, and Koum clearly took notice. When WhatsApp reached 400m active users in December 2013, its CEO chose to headline his blog post “400 Million Stories”. Two months later, the Facebook deal was announced.


WhatsApp now supports Face ID and Touch ID unlock for iOS users

370

About two months back, WABetaInfo revealed that iOS users might be getting Face ID and Touch ID support for WhatsApp and now after waiting for two months, iOS users finally get this authentication feature.

Any iOS users with WhatsApp version 2.19.20 will now be able to lock their WhatsApp with either Touch ID or Face ID depending on their iOS devices. Just go to Settings and select Privacy, then click on Screen Lock.

This feature when enabled will require you to use your Face ID/Touch ID when you want to unlock the app, though you can still reply to messages on your notifications and answer WhatsApp calls even when your phone is locked. That aside, you can also choose different time durations before the app requires your Face ID/Touch ID. So, if you’re a very cautious person, you can set the app to require your Face ID/Touch ID every time you access the app, and if you’re not, you can set between 1 minute, 15 minutes and 1 hour.

Of course, WhatsApp also comes with a precaution step by allowing you to use your iPhone passcode to access the app if the Face ID/Touch ID authentication fails. Moreover, preview will no longer be shown by the app when the authentication feature is enabled resulting in an empty view instead.

You also won’t have to worry about your authentication data as the information is managed by iOS hence no extraction will occur in WhatsApp server. Have you updated your WhatsApp? And if so, what are your thoughts on the new feature?

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WhatsApp now supports up to four person in one group call on its latest update

486

WhatsApp is making group calls easier with some changes on its latest update. Previously, users would have to wait for 1 minute and 1 second after starting a video call, and only by then, would they be able to add participants into the video call. There isn’t any option that offer users to initiate group calls at once, but now the app has been updated and users can now start group calls with just a couple of taps.

In the new updated version, you can initiate a group call simply by tapping into the group that you want to call, then tap on the phone icon at the top right corner of the screen, after that, when it loads into another screen, tap on the contacts within the group that you want to call and choose between the voice or video button. You could also initiate a group call from the new “Calls tab”, by just tapping onto the new Call icon on the top right corner of the screen, pick the contacts that you’d like to call via video or voice.

Currently, WhatsApp only supports voice and video calls up to four people at a time. Compared to other mobile messaging services such as Apple’s FaceTime that supports up to 32 people in one call or Messenger, which supports up to 50 people per call, WhatsApp seemed a bit limited. However, it is ideal for users who wants to communicate in smaller group and its also a useful way to connect with friends and family without having to tap into the cellular plan’s voice minutes. The calls are also end-to-end encrypted, which makes it a good option for privacy seekers.

According to WhatsApp, all members should have a good internet connection before using the group calling feature, as the quality of the call will depend on the contact with the weakest connection. The new update is now available for iOS users whereas Android users might need to wait a little longer as it will be rolling out “soon” on Android.

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WhatsApp officially rolls out video calling feature

339

WhatsApp, one of the most popular messaging app worldwide has been constantly improving since it was introduced, which is no surprise given the emerging competition from other texting apps. Earlier this week, WhatsApp has begun rolling out the two step verification feature to strengthen its security when a user registers a phone number to the app. Recently, WhatsApp beta testers have gotten a taste of the video calling feature not too long ago, and it looks like video calling will be official on WhatsApp.

According to the post by WhatsApp on its own blog, the folks at WhatsApp have been receiving numerous requests to add video calling into the app over the years. One of the reasons behind this brand new video calling feature is because of the fact that texts and voice calls are just not sufficient enough for a more personal connection. The WhatsApp update which includes video calling is currently rolling out, and over the next few days, users across the Android, iOS and Windows Phone devices will be able to get their hands on the update.

The WhatsApps video calling feature can be accessed via the chat window when you tap on the phone call icon on the top right corner. WhatsApp will then prompt you with a choice of either a voice call or a video call. Bear in mind that both parties must have the app updated with the video calling feature in order to carry out video calls. A couple of weeks back, WhatsApp has been spotted testing out a feature which is similar to Snapchat Stories and Instagram Stories, so let’s hope for that to roll out some time in the future. What do you think?

Source:
WhatsApp

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WhatsApp on iOS can now listen to audio messages while in other chats

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If you are a multitasker on WhatsApp, you would have hated the fact that you will have to stay on the same chat to finish listening to lengthy audio messages, that will no longer be the case with the latest WhatsApp update on iOS, as it will allow you to switch between chats as you listen to audio messages and files.

Version 22.4.75 of WhatsApp also brings other new features such as showing the profile picture of the contact when it pops up on your iPhone’s Lock Screen, which will probably save you trouble of recognising someone if they happen to use some weird names and you don’t have their number saved.

Focus mode is also properly supported after the update, where you can select certain contacts can still message you in the respective modes.

At this time of writing, the audio listening feature has not arrived at Android phones yet but we are sure it won’t be long for that to happen. Meanwhile, go hit that update button on your WhatsApp on iOS now.

Source:
9to5Mac

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WhatsApp testing new feature to pause/resume voice recordings

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WhatsApp
 have been testing several features related to voice recording; its newest experiment is a feature that pauses/resumes your voice recordings.

This feature allows WhatsApp user to pause in the middle of their voice recordings; the current options are to either stop and send the recording or to start over.

Will this WhatsApp feature be useful?

If you’re sending voice notes and you’re interrupted by a call, the new feature will save you the hassle of re-recording after your call.

Or if you’re trying to memorise a recipe on your phone’s browser and you needed to refer back, this pause function will also be useful.

WABetaInfo
 revealed that the new feature will be available for beta testers on both iOS and Android device, but the beta versions aren’t available yet.

whatsapp


WhatsApp Picture-in-Picture mode is now available on Android devices

318

Earlier this year, iOS users were introduced to the picture-in-picture mode on their WhatsApp, where users are able to watch video content from third party apps within WhatsApp without the need to move outside of the chat window. Now, this mode will be made available on Android devices.

The latest update for Android version of WhatsApp, things are much more convenient as users will not be redirected to external pages if they clicked on video links sent from Youtube, Facebook, Instagram and many more. When a video link is sent to the user’s WhatsApp, the video card would appear with a blurred image of the video’s thumbnail as well as the platform logo.

When the user taps onto the link, it will activate the PiP mode which allows the video to be played over the top half of the chat window. Users are also able to view the videos on full screen and they will be able to operate the video timeline bar below, to scroll to or past different segments.

To get this mode, users are required to update their WhatsApp app or they could also check for WhatsApp version 2.18.380 through the Google Play Store. This mode can be used in both individual and group chats on WhatsApp, and is compatible for all Android devices.

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WhatsApp reports 55 billion texts sent per day

371

You could possibly be a social and technology outcast if you do not have WhatsApp on your smartphone. It sounds mandatory although it isn’t, but most of you who are reading this are regular users of the world’s most popular messaging up right now. WhatsApp has previously shared that it has 1 billion monthly active users. Now the app boasts 1 billion daily active users.

For the record, WhatsApp now has 1.3 billion monthly active users, which is definitely a crazy feat in this day and age. In conjunction with this milestone, the company has also unveiled a couple more interesting numbers to get us excited.

The 55 billion messages sent per day would average in more than 2 billion texts per hour. Other figures include 4.5 billion photos shared per day and 1 billion videos shared per day. These big numbers may sound like impossible feats, but are actually unsurprising considering that this app accounted for more than 1 billion downloads on the Google Play Store alone.

This announcement by WhatsApp comes not too long after its users in China experienced blocks in sending images, videos and even texts for some cases, hinting at a potential banning of the app in the country.

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WhatsApp rolling out video call to beta users on Android

346

WhatsApp added a voice call feature to the app last year, allowing users to make phone calls to others without any charges, just data usage. Recently, some WhatsApp beta users have reported seeing an additional feature being added in the Android version of the app. Behold, we’ll be having video calls in WhatsApp in the near future.

This isn’t the first discovery of WhatsApp adding video calls to its apps. Not too long ago in December last year, a couple of screenshots have leaked, showing the iOS WhatsApp having a video calling interface. According to FoneArena, a number of users have spotted the feature sneaking into WhatsApp beta version 2.16.80 for Android. Tapping on the call button will lead you to an option menu of Audio Call and Video Call instead of automatically initiating an Audio Call like before.

The feature on the beta version of WhatsApp was seemingly short lived, as it was removed with another app update. Looks like we’ll have to wait for now. Audio Calling rolled out at a gradually slow pace so we will be expecting WhatsApp to do the same for Video Calls as well. What do you think?

Source:
FoneArena

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WhatsApp rolls out end-to-end encryption for all forms of communication

225

Today, WhatsApp has begun rolling out end-to-end encryption for all forms of communication that occur on its platform.

Prior to this update, WhatsApp has applied end-to-end encryption for text messages on Android back in November 2014. This update would cause all forms of communication on WhatsApp to be completely encrypted and accessible only to the intended recepient. This means that every photo, video, voice message, and even calls are encrypted. Regardless of whether or not you’re on iOS, Android or Windows 10 Mobile, WhatsApp will be encrypting all communications be default from this point forwards.

The company responsible for working on the encryption for WhatsApp is
Open Whisper Systems
. The company has been working with WhatsApp over the past year to implement a full-coverage encryption system and the fruits of their labour has gone live today.

With encryption now being standard on WhatsApp, it’ll be interesting to see how the U.S. government, more specifically the FBI, will react to this news. As of the time of writing, the FBI has yet to comment on the matter.

Source:
WhatsApp Blog
,
Wired

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WhatsApp rolls out feature that lets you transfer chats from iOS to Android

547

If you’re like us and have always complained about not being able to transfer WhatsApp chats between Android and iOS devices, you’ll be glad to know that the feature is now official, and it’ll be arriving in the coming weeks.

The catch is, the update won’t be available for the masses just yet – the first devices to receive this new feature will be the upcoming Samsung Galaxy Z Fold3 and Z Flip3 smartphones which were
announced

last night.

Thank you
@xdadevelopers
 for your recent discovery about the “Switch to Android” app, to migrate WhatsApp chat history from iOS to Android. 🤩
 These screenshots show how the process works. This feature is under development and it will be available in a future update.
https://t.co/FmZbXi33L2

pic.twitter.com/w7GiCUHSuS

— WABetaInfo (@WABetaInfo)
July 28, 2021

On top of that, the feature will only work when transferring iOS chats over to Android – which is all the better, because who wants to switch to iPhones anyways, right? (Just kidding)

The data transferring process can only be done offline, meaning you’ll need a Lightning-to-Type C cable for the feature to work.

There’s no word on when the update will be available to the masses and when it can be used to move from Android to iOS. Regardless of this, this is welcome announcement from WhatsApp, especially since it’s a much-requested feature we’ve been wanting since forever.

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WhatsApp rumoured to be implementing a password protection system

341

After introducing end-to-end encryption in an attempt to boost the security of the app, WhatsApp may be looking at introducing yet another layer to its messaging app.

According to a tip sent to
Android Authority
, details were spotted as part of a text translation program for WhatsApp to convert strings from English to Dutch. Among some of those phrases includes “Enter the current six-digit passcode.”, “Passcodes don’t match. Try again.”, and “Enter a recovery email address”, all of which indicates that such a system may be introduced to WhatsApp at some point.

Further reports also indicate that the use of a recovery email may be optional. Usually, a recovery email is required so that the user is able to retreive his account in the event that he forgets his password. However, with the recovery email section being optional, this means that it is entirely possible for a user to be locked out of his account entirely should the user forgets his or her own account password.

No information was given as to when (or if) this feature will be rolled out. Nevertheless, it is interesting to see that WhatsApp is looking to prevent protect your chatlogs from both digital and physical snoopers.

Source:
Android Authority

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WhatsApp’s new settings allows user to control who can invite them to group chats

363

WhatsApp is finally introducing a feature that they’ve previously mentioned on their blog regarding group chat invitations.

WhatsApp users have more control over who can invite them to group conversations, and this can be done through the Settings in WhatsApp. When you tap on Account > Privacy > Groups, you can choose who’s allowed to invite you into groups. As of now, there are three choices: “Everyone”, “My Contacts” or “My contacts except…”. Those who doesn’t want to receive random invitation should definitely skip the first option.

If you select “My contacts except…”, then you can basically blacklist individuals who you don’t want to receive any invitation from.

This new feature will be rolling out to both Android and iOS users soon, so if you haven’t update your WhatsApp, now would be a good time.

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WhatsApp new software that supports Multi-Device is now available for beta download!

1.1K

WhatsApp has been working on a new desktop app that run’s on the Universal Windows Platform (UWP). This app is set to have added features like the Multi-Device mode that was introduced earlier this year.

Now you might confuse this with the already available WhatsApp desktop app, however, this is a completely new software that has a redesigned UI, that takes a more minimalistic approach. It also facilitates the new
 Multi-Device

feature that allows you to use the app without your phone connected.

Image Credit: wabetainfo

It was also revealed that this application will be coming to Apple devices, with the integration of macOS Catalyst. This works where it uses the iPad app to enable it to run on a Mac.

When multi-device 2.0 will be released, you can link WhatsApp for iPad with your WA account on your iPhone. You can message and call people from your iPad without an active Internet connection on your iPhone.

It will be available in a future update!
 Follow me to discover more 💚
https://t.co/aQYBBtW7Sb

pic.twitter.com/oYXtrMPHqH

— WABetaInfo (@WABetaInfo)
September 2, 2021

The Mac version will look identical to the iPad application but will have improvements to the UI that would make it compatible with a desktop interface. Right now, this application is still under development and won’t be released until the iPad version is launched.

But of course, all of this is still under early development and more features and details will be revealed later. For now, only the WhatsApp Windows app is open for beta and can be downloaded on the
Microsoft store.

Source

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WhatsApp stickers and Stickers Store are coming real soon

799

WhatsApp finally joins the rest by bringing in stickers to its users, in addition to introducing an exclusive Stickers Store for users to get more sticker packs for free.

Currently, only the Android’s WhatsApp beta version 2.18.329 allows users to send and receive stickers, though iPhone users who have WhatsApp version 2.18.100 onwards can also receive the stickers. This means that the public version of WhatsApp on both Android and iOS devices are still lacking the feature although it is likely that Android users will receive the update before iOS users as it was reported that the feature will roll out slowly for users with iPhones that run on iOS 7.0 onwards.

This feature can be accessed by the emoji tab, where the sticker option will appear at the bottom bar. Similar to emojis, users can see stickers that they’ve recently used and also favourite stickers that they like. When multiple stickers are sent, they will be arranged two-by-two which is more space-efficient. Users can also get more stickers from the Stickers Store by WhatsApp and remove it when they don’t need them anymore. Aside from that, users who have supported versions of WhatsApp on their smartphones can also view and send the stickers on WhatsApp Web.

For those who are eager to try out the new feature and can’t wait for the public release, they can download the APK file or get the latest beta directly from the Google Play beta programme. The rest of the Android and iOS users will be able to view the stickers if their WhatsApp is updated, though it will require more time before they get to send stickers in the public version of WhatsApp. It is certain that most of the WhatsApp users will look forward to this new update.

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WhatsApp support for BlackBerry OS and Nokia devices extended till June 2017

270

Back in February earlier this year, in conjunction with WhatsApp hitting seven years of age, the company has brought some bad news to users of older mobile devices. WhatsApp has announced the ending of support for BlackBerry OS and BlackBerry 10 devices, Nokia S40 and Symbian S60, Android 2.2 and earlier, Windows Phone 7 and iOS 6 devices. The support will end before 2017, but the company has announced an extension of support for a couple of the aforementioned mobile platforms.

BBOS, BlackBerry 10, Nokia S40 and Nokia Symbian S60 devices will be receiving WhatsApp support, extended till the 30th of June, 2017. Support for the rest of the devices mentioned earlier however, will still be cut off by the end of 2016. That will be Android Gingerbread devices with version 2.2 and earlier, devices running Windows Phone 7, the iPhone 3GS and iOS 6 devices. Unless you happen to be stubbornly faithful to your age old mobile phones, we suggest that it’s time for you to upgrade to a newer mobile device, just like WhatsApp suggested.

As for BBOS, BlackBerry 10, Nokia S40 and Nokia Symbian S60 users, you have 7 months of time for you to hunt for a new mobile device if you so intend to continue using the all popular messaging service which is WhatsApp. Speaking of which, any of you still operating these ancient devices? Let us know your thoughts in the comments section below!

Source:
WhatsApp

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Whatsapp suspended for 72 hours in Brazil

477

Widely used and all-popular messaging service and app, Whatsapp has been blocked in Brazil, after failing to comply to court orders withinn the country. The service has been suspended for 72 hours, by the order of a Brazilian judge, Marcel Montalvo. This suspension happens to be the second time for Whatsapp, which was also suspended for 48 hours back in December last year.

The suspension this time, including the previous count, was due to Whatsapp not handing over chat transcripts to assist in a drug investigation. Whatsapp CEO and founder Jan Koum has claimed on Facebook that since Whatsapp started to fully encrypt conversations, no one is able to read any encrypted message. The service started end-to-end encryption of all chats not too long ago last month. Koum further stated:

“While we are working to get WhatsApp back up and running as soon as possible, we have no intention of compromising the security of our billion users around the world.”

Whatsapp’s previous suspension in Brazil caused quite an uproar among its millions of users, the 48-hour block was lifted after 12 hours. For more updates, stay tuned.

Source:
CNN

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WhatsApp to end support for older iPhones, Android and Windows phones by February 2020

319

As we close out the decade, WhatsApp will be ending support for a list of older smartphones by February 2020.

As software and hardware become better, older tech will have to be left out – and these phones include all Windows Phone, which will see a halt to WhatsApp support by the end of the year, while any phones running on Android versions older than 2.3.7 will have a cutoff date of February 1. Also following suit are iPhones with iOS 7 and older.

To be safe, you will need to run at least iOS 9 on your Apple devices, or Android 3.0 otherwise. If you have a device that’s about ten years old, be sure to check for the latest updates and install them. If you do not meet the requirements, it’s time to get a new phone, as WhatsApp updates and support are crucial for security.

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WhatsApp wants to increase limit of participants in video/audio calls

500

Using WhatsApp to call your family and friends is convenient, especially if it’s your main app to message them. However, group calls can be much harder once you exceed the four-person limit. Fortunately, WABetaInfo recently reported that the company will be expanding video and audio call limits in the near future.

Although there’s no exact number mentioned, we should be expecting 8, 10 or even 12 participants per video/audio calls. Any number higher than that will be too hard for WhatsApp users to converse smoothly. Naturally, all users will have to ensure that their app is updated to the latest version if they want to call more than 3 persons at once.

Image credit: WABetaInfo

Apart from that, WhatsApp will be adding a subtle update to show that your calls are end-to-end encrypted. It will be reflected on your call header and will show whether you’re on an iOS or Android device.

WhatsApp hasn’t announced when these features will be available, but it should be rolling out pretty soon to both App Store and Play Store.

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WhatsApp to introduce Snapchat Stories-like improvements to its status feature

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Facebook has been implementing many features that have been…”inspired” by other social network services as of late. Today, yet another dash of inspiration will be making its way to WhatsApp as the Facebook-owned chat app is getting some major improvements to its status feature.

Scheduled for rollout on the 24th of February, which is incidentally WhatsApp’s 8th birthday, the app’s status feature will be getting a new status feature that is obviously inspired by Snapchat’s Stories feature. With the new WhatsApp status, users will gain access to a new tab that would allow them to share decorated photos, videos and GIFs. These statuses would be up for 24 hours before being removed. Unlike Snapchat Stories however, WhatsApp status will also be end-to-end encrypted.

This feature will be made available across all versions of WhatsApp, ranging from iOS, Android and even Windows Phone. Again, the update is scheduled to go live on the 24th of February, so you don’t have to refresh your device’s respective app store just yet.

Source:
WhatsApp

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Whatsapp to soon introduce message reactions

1K

Last week, it was
reported

that Whatsapp’s new desktop app that supports the Multi-Device feature has launched and is available to download on the
Microsoft Store
.
 This week, the meta-owned instant messaging app is
reportedly

working on message reactions.

Yes, you read that right, you can finally react to your friend’s messages without having to “seen” them.

Image credit: WABetaInfo

Just like Messenger and Instagram DM, it’s possible to react with any emoji of your liking and everyone in the conversation will be able to see what you reacted with as well.

There will also be an option in the settings to turn on/off “Reaction Notifications” for both private and group chats.

Image credit: WABetaInfo

This long-awaited feature is still under development but we will be sure to update you when this it’s available on Android and iOS.

whatsapp
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Whatsapp Updates


Whatsapp to stop charging for its service and but no ads, they said

286

The number of Whatsapp users is about to reach 1 billion users, and once that happens, this Facebook-owned company is planning to drop its $0.99 annual subscription fee. Instead of charging for this service, which is usually payable once you’ve used the service for a year, Whatsapp is planning to test out more commercial services which is catered for B2C communication.

However, despite Whatsapp going the B2C way, according to its CEO Jan Koum, they will not be including any ads in the app. So far the only idea they’ve toyed with is maybe offering “test tools that allow you to use WhatsApp to communicate with businesses and organizations that you want to hear from.” Some of the companies Koum named were like Bank of America and American Airlines. Hopefully this style of service will not be forgotten for those of us from this side of the globe.

Another thing Whatsapp is doing is adding more encryption tools, however they have not mentioned if they’re planning to charge extra for this service or not.

Source:
Tech Crunch

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WhatsApp updates end of support for multiple platforms

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WhatsApp plays a very key part in the expansion of the smartphone social world. It is indeed one of the pioneers when it comes to messaging apps. The app is running for more than 7 years now since it kicked off in 2009. As much as older operating systems and platforms are growing obsolete, the folks at WhatsApp are making sure that app support lasts as long as possible.

WhatsApp has been updating the app support for multiple platforms over time, and it has once again announced the end of support for a couple more ancient operating systems.

Support for Nokia Symbian S60 will stop after this month. BBOS and BlackBerry 10’s support will only go on till December 31st this year. Android Gingerbread 2.3.7, although barely on Android devices nowadays, will still receive support till early 2020. The Nokia S40 platform was previously supported till “the end of 2016”, but has since been extended till 2018.

Looks like WhatsApp is still putting effort into making sure older devices get support for the app even if those operating systems are rarely used. Do you happen to be running WhatsApp on a Symbian device?

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WhatsApp users in China blocked from sending images and videos

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China is always known for its strict laws on media and censorship. Most popular social media apps are blocked in the country, two of the best examples being Facebook and Instagram. WhatsApp, the sole functioning app by Facebook in China, is reportedly being disrupted by the Chinese government as well.

Multiple WhatsApp users in the country have been complaining about not being able to send photos and videos through, with some even unable to send texts. The world’s most popular messaging app however isn’t very much active among China citizens as most of them have Wechat as their primary messaging app instead.

When the Chinese government previously banned Facebook and Instagram, WhatsApp still remained standing, but it appears that the app will soon face some sort of block after this recent disruption.

China’s strict censorship laws result in its users mostly using local version of apps. Besides Wechat being widely used in the country, Weibo is China’s take on Facebook and Twitter, and is hugely popular as well.

Apple also recently complied to local Chinese laws, setting up its first data center in the country to store its users’ data, as part of the enactment of a new law.

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Whatsapp users surpasses 1 billion mark

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Whatsapp has announced on its official blog that as of yesterday, there are one billion users on Whatsapp.

Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg foresaw the number when his company acquired Whatsapp in 2013. Many criticised and questioned the man’s move to acquire the messaging app more than two years back, but it seems that the billionaire has reaped what he sowed through the purchase.

Not long ago in September 2015, Whatsapp announced their surpassing of 900 million users, which will mean at least an increase of 100 million users from then till now. With Facebook already having surpassed the one billion mark, Zuckerberg now owns two apps consisting of at least two billion users, that is two out of seven people in terms of world population.

Whatsapp’s next step is still pretty much a mystery. The app has dropped its $0.99 annual fee recently, which means that it will be sourcing for other ways to gain revenue in order to house more Whatsapp chatters.

Are you part of the one billion? Let us know in the comments section below!

Source:
Whatsapp Blog
 Via:
TechnoBuffalo

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WhatsApp voice and video call available soon for web users

457

WhatsApp will soon roll out voice and video call features to its web and desktop app users; beta users can already try out the new features.

Voice and video calling will be available on WhatsApp Web and desktop app

WABetaInfo
 found that both call features are being tested in the beta version of the app so you can directly call your friends and family using your desktop app or WhatsApp Web. The call icons will appear right next to the search button at the top and making calls will lead to a new pop-up window. It was also mentioned that group video and voice calls will be supported as well.

Only beta users get to test it out for now

Image credit: WABetaInfo

However,
9to5Mac
 tested the feature and says that those on Windows 10 doesn’t have the option to make calls when in group chats. It is also reported that WhatsApp Desktop users have a higher chance to try out the feature as compared to Web users.

It’s not new, but it’s important

While video and voice calling aren’t something new, it is a big deal for WhatsApp user since the messaging app is the largest one right now. Being able to conduct voice/video calls through desktop will be a convenience since users won’t have to switch to other platforms to do so.

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WhatsApp will cut support for Windows Mobile, Blackberry OS in 2018

306

WhatsApp is probably the most popular messaging app right now. The app has hit way over 1 billion downloads on the Play Store, but the company will be ending its support for a couple of operating systems beginning 2018. Blackberry OS, Blackberry 10 and Windows Mobile 8.0 users, you might want to take note.

The above mentioned operating systems are now being used by a handful of users, and have aged since. WhatsApp previously extended support for Blackberry 10 till December 31 2017, but will not extend any further after that. Blackberry has moved on to adopting the Android platform under TCL, which has much better software support and a larger user community. It also looks like Microsoft isn’t going to be making operating systems for the foreseeable future after an awful past with Windows Mobile. Hence it does make sense for WhatsApp to stop its app support for these platforms.

As of now, iOS 6, Nokia Symbian S60, Windows Mobile 7.0 and Android versions older than 2.3.3 have stopped receiving software support from WhatsApp. Blackberry OS, Blackberry 10 and Windows Mobile 8.0 will be added to the list in 5 days. WhatsApp has also indicated that some features may stop functioning at any time since they have stopped actively developing for these platforms. If WhatsApp is your go to messaging app, you might want to consider a new device.

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WhatsApp will finally let you have one number on multiple phones with Companion Mode

8.5K

Have you always wanted to use the same WhatsApp number on at least two smartphones?

WhatsApp is finally rolling out such a feature known as Companion Mode, which will finally allow you to have one phone number to be used on up to four devices, this is a long-awaited feature especially for people who carries multiple smartphones and wants to access their chats without using their main device.

Such feature has been available on other services such as Telegram for a long time, which allows you to sign in on multiple devices as long as you verify those logins with a one-time code.

Companion Mode on WhatsApp will sync all your messages, media and calls with end-to-end encryption, while there are also things you can’t do on your secondary devices, such as view live locations, create and view broadcast lists, and manage WhatsApp statuses.

To setup a secondary device, make sure your WhatsApp has been updated to the latest version, and all you need to do is to tap on the Link a Device option when launching the app where it prompts you to enter your phone number, have your main device scan the QR code with the Linked Devices feature just like how you’d login on WhatsApp Web, then you should be all set.

This feature is still rolling out at this time of writing so don’t be surprised if it hasn’t reached you yet.

Source:
WhatsApp

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WhatsApp will soon allow you to do Voice status updates

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Statuses on WhatsApp are similar to how you’d post Instagram and Facebook stories, and if you have been using it frequently to keep your friends updated on how you are doing, you’ll be happy that WhatsApp will soon allow you to use your voice as a status update instead of just pictures and text.

This feature has been spotted by none other than WABetaInfo on the latest beta version of WhatsApp, which if you are own the WhatsApp Beta for Android v2.23.2.8. If you are on the said WhatsApp beta version, you should be able to notice the voice note icon on the bottom right just like how it is on your chats, simply press and hold to start recording a voice status and post it, but unlike voice messages, you can only record up to 30 seconds of your voice.

Voice status is end-to-end encrypted, which you can also choose who you want to listen to your voice status, they disappear after 24 hours but users are also able to set it to listen to once for every user that have viewed it.

Personally, I haven’t been using WhatsApp Status since it was made available, but for those who prefer to use it to update their status to a small circle of friends, this could turn out to be a very unique way of posting your status.

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whatsapp voice status


WhatsApp will soon let you prevent frequently forwarded messages in group chats

434

We all know that feeling when one of your family members forwards random messages into your WhatsApp group chat that you’ve probably seen a million times, which is why WhatsApp’s upcoming feature is a feature that will finally put an end to this situation.

WhatsApp is rolling out the Frequently Forwarded message feature on WhatsApp beta for iOS 2.19.40.23 and Android beta 2.19.86!
 A message is frequently forwarded when it has been forwarded 5+ times.
 Check out the screenshot and the article for more info.
https://t.co/HGIOImvuyK

pic.twitter.com/ocwm6f3UCU

— WABetaInfo (@WABetaInfo)
March 29, 2019

In the near future, WhatsApp will be integrating a Frequently Forwarded Messages feature that is able to detect, well, frequently forwarded messages. Once a message is forwarded more than 5 times, it is labelled as a frequently forwarded message and you’ll be able to stop these messages from reaching you when the new feature is out.

This feature can be found in Group Settings — when it’s available — so you can choose to stop others from sending frequently forwarded messages to the group, which in certain situations can prevent spreading of fake news. However, WABetaInfo did mention that the WhatsApp user can still copy the forwarded message to be sent into the group.

WhatsApp beta for Android 2.19.1: WhatsApp is working on a new redesigned section to send audio files to contacts.
 It supports audio preview and image preview of the audio file (if available).
 Max 30 audio messages at a time.
 FEATURE AVAILABLE IN FUTURE!
pic.twitter.com/5hCIavpCcU

— WABetaInfo (@WABetaInfo)
January 7, 2019

On a side note, WhatsApp has finally brought in audio picker in its 2.19.89 beta version that allows users to play audio before sending it to others. Moreover, WhatsApp users can now send up to 30 audio messages at once, similar to the current limit of images that can be sent at once.

Frequently Forwarded Messages
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WhatsApp will soon let you send uncompressed images

9.4K

The most common and default way of sending pictures over to a friend is nonetheless by using WhatsApp, but images sent using WhatsApp are compressed and only suitable for social media uploads, this issue will soon end as WhatsApp is about to let you send uncompressed images in a future update.

As spotted by WABetaInfo, the latest WhatsApp Beta on Android with version 2.23.2.11 now has an option to choose the photo quality when you send an image in a chat window, though this is not to be confused with the media upload quality that’s within the settings app, as the latter feature still compresses your pictures nonetheless.

Currently, the only way to send an uncompressed image through WhatsApp is by using the attach file feature, which can complicate things as you need to browse through your images through a file manager and you can’t do any markups on the image before sending over, hence this feature couldn’t have arrived at a better time since its rival Telegram has supported the feature for a long time.

Last week, we
reported
 that you can soon post voice messages as your WhatsApp status and it is also set to allow you to transfer chats between Android devices without the reliance on Google Drive, the chat app is definitely ramping up its efforts to include features by its competitors while still offering end-to-end encryption between chats.

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WhatsApp will stop functioning in devices on Nokia S40 platform

263

It’s the beginning of 2019, but it’s also the end of WhatsApp for some devices. More specifically, WhatsApp is going to stop updating for devices that run on Nokia’s S40 platform.

From 1 January onwards, owners with Nokia devices such as Nokia 206, Nokia 301, Nokia Asha 230 and so on will no longer be able to make new WhatsApp accounts and the app could stop functioning for them at any time. This is because the company will no longer actively develop for the platform.

This isn’t the first time WhatsApp has stopped supporting platforms, as it did the same to Nokia Symbian S60, BlackBerry OS and BlackBerry 10 back in 2017. WhatsApp will also discontinue its support for devices with Android 2.3.7 and older or iPhones with iOS 7 and older, starting after February 1, 2020.

It’s not that WhatsApp is discriminating older software or devices, but according to them, the devices “don’t offer the kind of capabilities we need to expand our app’s features in the future”.

The company also recommend their users to upgrade to a newer device if their current devices are affected, though it’s easier said than done for those who are struggling with their financial statuses.

With over 1.5 billion global users, WhatsApp is one of most used apps in the world. But perhaps those affected can opt for other messaging apps if they’re unwilling to switch to a newer device as it’ll save them from spending money on a new phone.

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WhatsApp’s Dark Mode is coming for iOS users, and there’ll be two configurations

296

We’ve already gotten Dark Mode for Instagram, but now WhatsApp will be getting a Dark Mode for iOS users too.

Though not available yet, this Dark Mode that
WABetaInfo
 has labelled as “Dark Theme” is actually going to be implemented in three different ways. Currently, there’s two configurations that has already been discovered; the first one uses really dark colours like dark grey and black for the backgrounds and cells, whereas the second one uses softer dark colours such as lighter greys for the backgrounds and cells.

Image credit: WABetaInfo

In addition, the two configurations will also be coupled with “Dark Bubbles” — meaning that chat bubbles in the conversations will turn to dark grey for the recipient and dark green for the sender. Unfortunately, the third configuration has yet to be revealed.

WABetaInfo
 also mentioned that WhatsApp may not let its users choose the configurations; instead, it depends on the device accessibility settings but that’s not confirmed. While we may have to wait awhile for WhatsApp’s Dark Theme, Android users can now use fingerprint authentication to unlock their WhatsApp so they won’t have to worry about others stalking their WhatsApp messages.

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WhatsApp’s Group Invitation feature lets you reject joining group chats

319

Sometimes you get invited into group chats that you don’t want to, and there’s nothing you can do because it’s awkward to leave the group chat when you friends and family are in it. Now, WhatsApp is currently testing out a new feature that will spare you from being invited into group chats that you don’t want to, so you can avoid receiving all kinds of irrelevant messages and images in WhatsApp.

This Group Invitation is not currently available yet, but what it does is it’ll allow you to reject group invitations if you alter your settings on WhatsApp. This feature can be found in WhatsApp Settings>Account>Privacy>Groups.

Image credit: WABetaInfo

You can either allow everyone, your contacts, or nobody to add you into groups, and if select the first option, you will not receive any invitation request. If you select the second option, you’ll receive an invitation request if someone not from your contact list invites you, and if you select the third option, you’ll receive an invitation request each time anyone wants to add you into a group.

That aside, if you don’t respond to the invitation within 72 hours, the invitation expires and you’ll have to either be re-invited or use a group invite link.

Group Invitation will be available in the future for both Android and iOS users, but as it is still under development, there is no official date for its release yet.

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WhatsApp’s new update now supports Apple’s CarPlay

323

Apple’s CarPlay will be getting support for a new app and it’s an app that is widely used by all of us. WhatsApp is not supported on CarPlay following the latest WhatsApp update.

The messaging app now shows up as an app on CarPlay when you connect your iPhone to the supported players but it works just like the other messaging apps due to Apple’s rules on messaging apps for CarPlay. The app will now display a badge icon when you have messages and you can even ask Siri to read out the messages received, or send new messages using your voice. The only downside to WhatsApp on CarPlay comparing to iMessage is that you will not be able to scroll through the messages.

If you have a head unit that supports CarPlay, then you can update the WhatsApp app now and try out this new feature the next time you go for a ride.

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Whatsapp’s new update will let you send a photo album

288

The widely used messaging app Whatsapp has recently been updated on the iOS and this new update comes with a more visual change with filters, albums, and reply shortcuts to make it easier to communicate with people.

One of the new features is adding filters to your photos, with pop, black and white, cool, chrome and film ready which can also be added to GIFs and videos. In addition to that, the new update will also bring an album feature that groups any four photos or videos into easy to read layouts, the person receiving this can open the album and swipe through the single images too, gone are the days where you will see multiple images loading on your screen. For those of you in massive amount of group chat, Whatsapp has made it easier for you to reply the members in the chat with a new quick-reply feature, all you need to do is swipe on the message that you want to reply to and it will appear at the bottom of the chat window as a reply and you can type your message there.

These features are on the iOS only for now and an Android update will come in the future, but there is no specific timeline on when it will arrive. To update your app simply got to your App Store and press the Update tab.

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WhatsApp’s upcoming feature will let you ignore your archived chats…for good

574

WhatsApp is constantly bringing new features, and soon there will be a feature known as “Ignore archived chats”.

Currently, the feature is still not available because it’s currently under development and will need more improvements before it can be released. The upcoming feature was first named “Vacation Mode” before it’s renamed as “Ignored archived chats”.

Image credit: WABetaInfo

As of now, archived chats can still resurface when there’s a new message, which automatically unarchive it. However, with the new feature, archived chats can remain archived even when there are new messages. This feature can be enabled in user’s WhatsApp Notification Settings when it is finally available.

That aside, there will also be a new Archived cell that shows all the chats that have been archived. The ignored archived chats will also be placed at the same cell, so it’ll be easier for users to see all their archived chats at once.

Ignore Archived Chats
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WhatsApp’s update allows direct group calls in chats

328

WhatsApp finally have an iOS beta program for its users earlier this month, which is why now the beta users get to try out the new UI improvements for WhatsApp’s group calls.

A few months back WhatsApp decided to introduce group calls to its users, allowing them to video or audio call their friends, 4 participants at a time. However, the way to have a group call is by first calling one individual before adding more participants to the call, making it a group call. Now with the new UI, the Group call button will now appear in group chats, so users can actually call their friends altogether at once.

Image credit: WABetaInfo

Of course, the group video or audio call will still be limited to four participants at once. When the user click on the group call button, they will be shown a list of contacts in the group in which they can pick up to three, then they’ll be given the option to either video call or audio call the participants. In addition to that, users can only call those whose numbers are saved in their contact books, or else the contact will not show up in the list of contacts.

Image credit: WABetaInfo

The new beta version 2.18.110.17 also fixes the few bugs that has occurred in WhatsApp such GIFs that suddenly stop playing, unintentional trigger of haptic feedback when opening chats, and inability to download and send WhatsApp Stickers. Other issues include sudden addition or dismissal as Admin in a group, localisation issues when chatting with businesses and also issues when searching for chats, contacts and messages.

According to WABetaInfo, the new UI improvement to the group calls will soon be available to iOS users in App Store, possibly in the next few weeks.

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WhatsApp’s update allows video previews in push notifications

371

WhatsApp is introducing a video preview feature to its iOS beta users, and many are talking about how risky it could be for those who receives videos with inappropriate content.

The new feature allows the users to get a preview of the videos sent to them by others in push notifications, meaning that it can be viewed even from the lock screens of their smartphones. Currently the feature is only available for those who have the beta version 2.18.102.5, but we’re still unsure if WhatsApp users will welcome the new feature.

Image credit: WABetaInfo

Of course, if you’re not someone who have inappropriate conversation through WhatsApp, you’re unlikely to be worried about the new feature but you can never guarantee that you’ll never receive inappropriate contents from your friends as a joke, especially if your friends know you have the new feature and they’re trying to embarrass you.

That aside, if you’re worried about being embarrassed in public, you can always just turn off the preview mode in your settings. Just go to your settings tab and tap on the Show Preview to turn it off if it’s already on and that’s how you prevent your friends from embarrassing you through WhatsApp in public.

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