Articles about WhatsApp

WhatsApp has long been one of the more secure messaging apps with mass appeal, largely thanks to end-to-end encryption. This has been boosted further by features such as disappearing messages, and now Meta has added Chat Lock.

The company says that the feature "lets you protect your most intimate conversations behind one more layer of security"; what this means in practice is that message can be password or fingerprint protected. But there is more to Chat Lock than this.

Continue reading →

It is only very recently that WhatsApp beta users were given the ability to use the chat app across multiple phones. Now the company has announced that the feature is being rolled out globally to all users.

It has been possible for some time to sign into a single WhatsApp account on multiple device, but only one phone was permitted. This is something that, for numerous reasons, users have complained about -- and now it changes for everyone.

Continue reading →

WhatsApp is not alone in offering a disappearing message feature. It is an idea that's fairly self-explanatory: messages can be configured to automatically delete after a certain period of time -- something that's ideal for certain sensitive information.

But in a slightly confusing move, WhatsApp is introducing the option to stop disappearing messages from disappearing. The option is called Keep In Chat, and it is being described as "your new sender superpower".

Continue reading →

WhatsApp has announced a series of new privacy and security features to help protect against account hijacking and more.

The company says that it believes "your messages should be as private and secure as an in-person conversation", and it is with this in mind that it is launching Account Protect, Device Verification and Automatic Security Codes. Until now, we have only seen signs of these security features in beta versions of the chat app, but now an official announcement has been made promising an imminent rollout.

Continue reading →

If you have ever wanted to use WhatsApp on two or more phones, you will have been disappointed. While Meta has made it possible to be signed into a single WhatsApp account across multiple devices for a while, only one of them can be a phone; the others can be laptops or desktops running the app, or a device signed into the web version of WhatsApp.

But now this is changing. After a period of testing with a small number of users, WhatsApp is now rolling out Companion Mode more widely. This is a new feature that lets you sign into your account on multiple mobiles -- in fact you can use the same account on up to four phones if you want.

Continue reading →

While WhatsApp is most commonly used on mobile devices, growing numbers of users are adopting the desktop version of the app. Meta has just announced the release of a significantly improved version of the Windows app.

Speed is a key upgrade here, with load times being reduced, but there are also feature improvements. The latest version of WhatsApp for Windows now supports larger group video and audio calls.

Continue reading →

While WhatsApp is most commonly used on iOS and Android devices, there are plenty of reasons for wanting to use the messaging service on the desktop. There has been a web-based version of WhatsApp for quite some time, but for many people this is a poor substitute for a dedicated app.

Windows users have been able to use a desktop app for ages, and now the same is true for those who are more at home on a Mac. There has been a beta version of WhatsApp for a number of weeks, but only through TestFlight which has a strict limit on user numbers. But now it is possible to download the macOS version of the beta direct from WhatsApp,

Continue reading →

WhatsApp may be one of the most popular communications apps available, but it is not available everywhere. The very thing that makes it appealing to anyone concerned about privacy and security -- namely end-to-end encryption -- is the same thing that causes some countries to block access to it.

To help out people whose governments deny them access to WhatsApp, the app now offers proxy support. As well as being useful to anyone whose internet is censored or controlled, support for proxy connections can also prove helpful in case of internet shutdowns.

Continue reading →

While there are numerous ways to save links, text and other information you need to refer to later, sending an email to oneself is a method that many people rely on. But soon you could use WhatsApp to send yourself a message instead.

Currently in beta testing, the feature is one that will be welcomed by many users, particularly those who use WhatsApp across multiple devices. Here's what we know so far.

Continue reading →

Like all messaging apps and services, WhatsApp has its fair share of advantages and disadvantages. For many people, the end-to-end encryption the app offers is a major draw, although being owned by Meta requires some users to hold their noses while they use it.

But among the great things about WhatsApp are the speed at which its developers work, and their willingness to listen to -- and act upon -- user feedback. And it is user demand for greater privacy options that has driven the addition of online status control for beta users.

Continue reading →

Twitter is looking to make sharing content easier and wider-reaching by cross-pollinating with other social platforms. The micro-blogging site -- which may or may not end up being bought by Elon Musk -- is adding an option for sharing tweets via WhatsApp.

For now, the new sharing option is limited to certain markets, but it is hard to imagine that it will not spread globally in the near future. The question is, will it be welcomed by users or not?

Continue reading →

WhatsApp is a great messaging tool, and one that I use daily, both for individual and group chats. Meta has added new features to it over time, with yet more welcome additions on the way, but it’s long overdue a full redesign.

If you’ve ever wondered what kind of makeover the service could benefit from, we have the answer for you right here.

Continue reading →

WhatsApp is not only one of the popular messaging apps out there, it is also one that is subject to some of the fastest development work. Existing features are constantly being tweaked, new options are being added all the time, and Mark Zuckerberg has just revealed three exciting new privacy-focused features.

In an announcement on his personal Facebook page, the CEO of Meta teased a trio of new features which will help to improve the privacy of group and one-on-one chats. The upcoming additions are part of a new global campaign from WhatsApp that focuses on and promotes privacy and security features.

Continue reading →

The ability to edit sent messages is something that is common -- although far from universal -- in chat and social apps. The likes of Slack and Skype make it easy to make changes, such as correcting typos in messages, and it is an option that is said to be coming to Twitter at some point in the future.

But while the option to edit tweets may be some way off, users of WhatsApp may have this option sooner rather than later. The developers of WhatsApp are currently working on bringing a message-editing option to the mobile versions of the apps, as well as the desktop and web editions.

Continue reading →

WhatsApp users may enjoy the benefits of end-to-end encryption, but the same cannot be said of messages sent via Facebook or Instagram. What's more, this is not going to be changing any time soon.

While Meta (or Facebook as it was at the time) previously announced plans to introduce encrypted messaging to the Facebook and Instagram platforms, there was heavy criticism from campaigners and organizations for child safety. Now the company has said end-to-end encryption will not be arriving until 2023.

Continue reading →