WhatsApp

Billions of messages are sent over the WhatsApp chat platform every day. One of the reasons for the service's massive popularity is that it lets users send and receive as many media-rich messages as they want, which – as long as they've limited WhatsApp's use of their cellular data plan – costs them next to nothing. That's great news for senders, but one of the drawbacks of receiving...

WhatsApp has made it easier to organize your conversations with the global rollout of custom chat lists. This new feature expands on the chat filters introduced earlier this year, and offers a more personalized way to manage your messaging. To create a custom list, tap the plus (+) icon in the filter bar at the top of the Chats tab. You can add both individual contacts and group chats to...

Meta's WhatsApp chat platform offers more than just the ability to send messages. It also provides various text formatting options to help you emphasize your messages. Whether you want to make your text bold, italicize it, strikethrough, or change the font, WhatsApp has you covered. Here's a quick guide on how to use these text formatting features to enhance your chatting experience,...

WhatsApp has introduced a custom sticker creation tool for iPhone users running iOS 17 or later. Keep reading to learn how to use it. In the world of instant messaging, stickers offer a dynamic and playful way to express your emotions and thoughts. But instead of using standardized stickers from an existing stock, wouldn't it be better if you could create your own? WhatsApp on iPhone has...

WhatsApp has rolled out a new option that lets users on iPhone share photos and video over the messaging platform in their original quality. Here's how it works and how to use it. Previously, WhatsApp users could only send media in high resolution or "HD quality." But while that is a welcome improvement that addressing the service's low quality media sharing limitation, it still involves...

WhatsApp has rolled out a new option that lets users send photos and video over the messaging platform in high resolution. Keep reading to learn how it's done. WhatsApp has released an update allowing iPhone and Android users to send photos and videos in high resolution, finally addressing the service's low quality media sharing limitation. Called "HD quality," the option means users can...

Unsolicited phone calls are a regular annoyance and even a cause of stress for many smartphone users these days. Thankfully, iOS includes an option to automatically silence calls to your iPhone from unknown numbers, and now you can do the same for calls you receive via WhatsApp, too. WhatsApp announced a new Silence Unknown Callers feature for the encrypted messaging platform in June 2023....

WhatsApp in May 2023 introduced a new Chat Lock feature that allows you to secure select conversations in your inbox behind a passcode, fingerprint, or Face ID authentication. Keep reading to learn how it's done. Millions of users rely on WhatsApp as a means of privately and securely communicating with others, which is why the company's developers are continually seeking new ways to improve...

WhatsApp is rolling out a new ability for users to edit messages after they have been sent over the popular Meta-owned encrypted chat platform. Keep reading to learn how it works on iPhone and Android. It's been a long time coming, but WhatsApp has finally brought its much-anticipated sent-message editing feature to the chat service. When Apple released iOS 16, it introduced the ability...

Previously, WhatsApp has allowed users of the encrypted messaging platform to link up to four devices to their account, but only one of those devices could be a smartphone. Happily, that's now changed, and WhatsApp has introduced the ability to use the same account on multiple phones. So now you can link another phone as one of up to four additional devices, the same as when you link with...

In a new privacy-centric update released in August 2022, WhatsApp has added the ability for users to adjust the visibility of their "Last Seen" status on a contact-by-contact basis. Keep reading to learn how it's done. As regular WhatsApp users will know, the "Last Seen" status of a contact you're in conversation with sits atop the conversation thread, informing you when that contact last...

After a long wait, Meta this week announced the ability to transfer WhatsApp chat history, photos, videos, and voice messages from Android to iPhone while maintaining end-to-end encryption. The system uses Apple's Move to iOS app for Android phones, and can be initiated during the setup process for a new (or factory reset) iPhone. This article runs through the steps involved in transferring...

WhatsApp in 2020 launched disappearing messages on its end-to-end encrypted chat platform as a way of doubling down on user privacy. If you want to have control over how long a message lasts in WhatsApp, read on to learn how it works. When you sit down and have a face-to-face conversation with someone, usually you're reasonably confident that your conversation isn't being recorded and stored ...

For a long time now, WhatsApp has included a feature that shows when a user was last online or last active on the messaging platform, which can be either helpful or a hindrance, depending on your personal or business situation. As regular WhatsApp users will know, the "Last Seen" status of a contact sits atop the conversation thread, informing you when that contact last opened the app and...

Despite strong competition from the likes of Telegram and Signal, WhatsApp remains the most popular mobile messaging platform by a mile, connecting over a billion active users around the world every day. As a smartphone app, WhatsApp messages are principally exchanged between iPhones and Android phones, but WhatsApp is known to be developing an iPad app that would increase the number of...

WhatsApp has rolled out multi-device support to all users on iOS and Android, allowing WhatsApp to be used on up to four linked devices without users needing to be connected via a smartphone. Previously, the WhatsApp mobile app was required to authenticate an account used on another device, such as a computer, and used a QR code to link a user account to a web browser or desktop app. While...

WhatsApp end-to-end encrypted backups are now rolling out for iPhone users, Facebook has announced. Until now, WhatsApp let users back up their chat history to ‌‌iCloud‌‌, but the messages and media contained in the backups weren't protected by WhatsApp's end-to-end encryption while in ‌‌Apple's cloud servers‌. End-to-end encryption ensures only you and the person you're...

If you're a heavy WhatsApp user and your iPhone is running low on storage, it may be that all the videos, voice messages and photos stored in the app are taking up a hefty amount of space on your device. Fortunately, WhatsApp features a built-in media management tool that can help you identify, select, and bulk delete GIFs, photos, and videos that may be filling up your phone. The tool...

Despite strong competition from the likes of Telegram and Signal, WhatsApp remains the most popular messaging platform by a mile. At the last count in 2020, the Facebook-owned service had more than 2 billion WhatsApp users around the globe and rising. If you consider that it had 1.5 billion users in 2018 and 1 billion in 2016, then the number of active WhatsApp accounts has been increasing...

Over 100 million new users joined encrypted messaging app Telegram in January 2021. The stunning growth in the platform's user base was linked to an exodus from rival chat app WhatsApp, which concerned many of its users with a confusing privacy policy update that seemed to imply that more of their data would be shared with Facebook. WhatsApp tried to deal with the fallout by clarifying that...

In WhatsApp, you can set a custom alert tone for messages and calls from a specific person in your contacts, just like you can in the Contacts app on iPhone. Setting a special alert tone for a WhatsApp contact enables you to recognize when that particular person is calling you or has sent you a message, without you even having to look at your phone's screen. To know instantly when someone...

Facebook's free WhatsApp instant messaging app uses end-to-end encryption so that messages exchanged over the platform can only be read by the intended recipient. If you use WhatsApp for important conversations and you want to further ensure your privacy, you can prevent WhatsApp messages from showing previews on your iPhone. When you receive a WhatsApp message on your iPhone, the...

WhatsApp on iPhone includes an option to lock the app with your device's Face ID or Touch ID authentication. This article explains how to enable the feature. Locking WhatsApp is a neat way of doubling the security and privacy of your messages, and especially useful if your iPhone isn't set up to automatically lock after a few minutes of idle time, because even you leave your iPhone unlocked,...

WhatsApp has been updated to allow users to create group video chats with up to 50 people on the social platform, thanks to an integration with Facebook's recently announced Messenger Rooms feature. Facebook unveiled Messenger Rooms as an alternative to Zoom and Group FaceTime in April, releasing it to a small trial group of users. Facebook said part of its plan was to extend the capability to ...

WhatsApp has upgraded its end-to-end encrypted video call feature, which now allows groups of up to eight participants to chat together, up from the previous limit of four. WhatsApp has been gradually developing its group video call capabilities through beta builds, as rival video call services like Zoom, FaceTime and Skype have exploded in popularity amid the ongoing stay-at-home measures....

WhatsApp messenger recently rolled out its long-awaited Dark Mode theme for iPhone, which is good news for anyone who uses the chat app in bed when they just can't sleep. With Dark Mode enabled, users will benefit from no more bright white splash screen blinding them upon opening WhatsApp, a less harsh app interface, new dark themes for chat threads, and potentially less battery drain....

WhatsApp end-to-end encrypted backups are now rolling out for iPhone users, Facebook has announced. Until now, WhatsApp let users back up their chat history to ‌‌iCloud‌‌, but the messages and media contained in the backups weren't protected by WhatsApp's end-to-end encryption while in ‌‌Apple's cloud servers‌. Since Apple holds the encryption keys for ‌‌iCloud‌‌ Backup, a subpoena of...

WhatsApp has announced it will give its two billion users the option to upload their chat backups to Apple's iCloud using password-protected encryption. Currently, WhatsApp on iPhone lets users back up their chat history to ‌‌iCloud‌‌, but messages and media that users back up aren't protected by WhatsApp's end-to-end encryption while in ‌‌Apple's cloud servers‌. Given that Apple...

WhatsApp is working on giving users the option to adjust the visibility of their "Last Seen" status on a contact-by-contact basis, according to a new report from forthcoming-feature specialist WABetaInfo. As regular WhatsApp users will know, the "Last Seen" status of a contact sits atop the conversation thread, informing you when that contact last opened and was active on the app....

One of the biggest hurdles for customers looking to switch between Android and iOS is their inability to transfer their WhatsApp chats between the two different ecosystems. Now, that's coming to an end, as WhatsApp has officially announced that it will easily allow users to transfer their chats between Android and iOS. As reported first by Engadget, WhatsApp used airtime during Samsung's...

Facebook is researching ways to analyze encrypted data, such as WhatsApp messages, without actually decrypting the information, according to a new report from The Information. The report cites that Facebook has confirmed it is building a team of artificial intelligence researchers to "study ways of analyzing encrypted data without decrypting it." While it is still early in development, the...

WhatsApp has introduced a new call feature to its platform that allows you to jump into an end-to-end encrypted group call even after it has started. Previously it was only possible to join a group call in WhatsApp when the call was first made and the phone was ringing, which meant if you missed the initial notification and the group call had started, you were effectively locked out of...

In an interview with WABetaInfo, Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg confirmed that the popular messaging app will soon be rolling out multi-device capability, allowing users to use their WhatsApp account on up to four different linked devices even when their main smartphone is not connected to the internet. According to Zuckerberg, Facebook has faced "a big technical challenge" in getting "all...

Regulators in Germany are seeking to bar Facebook from collecting user data from its subsidiary, WhatsApp (via Bloomberg). The Hamburg regulator is looking to achieve an "immediately enforceable order" against Facebook by May 15, due to concerns that WhatsApp's privacy policy changes could lead to the unlawful use of user data for marketing and advertising purposes. Data Commissioner...

WhatsApp is testing a new feature that will allow users to transfer their chat history, logs, and transcripts between iOS and Android devices, making it easier for WhatsApp users to switch between the two platforms. The new future, in the early stages of development, was brought to light by WABetaInfo, who often shares unreleased and hidden features behind the chatting service. According to ...

As indicated in a newly published support document, WhatsApp has ended support for iOS 9 and earlier versions of Apple's mobile operating system, requiring all users to be running at least iOS 10, released in 2016. Up until now, iOS 9 users – who will have been mainly iPhone 4s owners – were able to use the encrypted chat service. Going forward, however, iOS 10 is required, meaning users...

WhatsApp is working on a way to secure users' chat backups in iCloud using password-protected encryption, according to a new report from forthcoming-feature specialist WABetaInfo. The Facebook-owned chat platform began early work on the security feature back in March 2020. Currently, WhatsApp on iPhone lets users back up their chat history to ‌iCloud‌, but messages and media that users back...

WhatsApp is today updating its desktop app for Mac and PC with voice and video calling support, the company announced. Like WhatsApp's mobile app, voice and video calls on the desktop equivalent are end-to-end encrypted, ensuring only the people conversing have access to the contents of a call. WhatsApp has been in the process of testing the new desktop call functions over the last few...

WhatsApp is testing the ability for images within chats to self-destruct, allowing the receiver to only view images once, without the ability to save them to their device. Screenshots shared by WABetaInfo, who frequently leaks and reports on WhatsApp's plans and upcoming features, show an interface in which the sender can choose an image to self-destruct. If an image is chosen to...

WhatsApp has revealed how it will gradually limit the features available to accounts held by users who do not accept the platform's impending privacy policy changes, due to come into effect on May 15. WhatsApp's new banner explaining the privacy policy changes According to an email seen by TechCrunch to one of its merchant partners, WhatsApp said it will "slowly ask" users who have not yet...

WhatsApp has started using Status messages to remind its users of the messaging service's "commitment to your privacy," following the recent confusion regarding changes to its privacy policy last month. "WhatsApp is now on Status," the message begins. "We'll let you know about new features and updates here. One thing that isn't new is our commitment to your privacy. WhatsApp can't read or...

Telegram is working on a way to let users import their chat history from WhatsApp so they won't lose old conversations if they switch messaging platforms. An update to the app briefly appeared in the App Store on Wednesday detailing the new import tool, but another update was swiftly issued that removed all mention of the tool, suggesting Telegram is still developing it. WABetaInfo was...

WhatsApp will soon require biometric authentication to link a WhatsApp account to a computer web browser or desktop app, reports The Verge. The mobile app uses a QR code to link a user account to a web browser or desktop app, but the company wants to make the process more secure so that it can't be done by anyone who happens to gain access to your iPhone. The new system will be enabled by ...

New universal chat app "Beeper" combines 15 different chat platforms into a single inbox and offers iMessage on Android and Windows (via The Verge). The app comes from a team including former Pebble CEO Eric Migicovsky, and enables users to integrate a range of messaging services, including WhatsApp, SMS, Signal, Telegram, Slack, Twitter, Skype, Hangouts, Discord, Instagram, and Facebook...

WhatsApp has opted to delay new privacy policy changes that have led to a significant amount of confusion over data sharing with Facebook, WhatsApp announced today. The planned privacy policy update will be delayed for three months, but it is not canceled. According to WhatsApp, there's been "a lot of misinformation" leading to concern about the update. WhatsApp clarifies that the update...

Following backlash after changing its terms and privacy policy to consolidate a significant amount of data sharing with Facebook, WhatsApp is now assuring users about the privacy measures built into its app. Last week, WhatsApp began informing users of updates to the app's terms of service and privacy policy. The updated agreements, which users must consent to in order to continue using...