Every other week, WhatsApp releases new tools or updated privacy settings, and the company constantly develops new features. Hence, it should not come as a surprise that the platform for instant messaging is now working on a new privacy feature that will enable users to lock their private chats within the application itself.
According to a story published in WaBetaInfo, WhatsApp users will soon be able to lock any particular chat on the site by using either their fingerprint, a passcode, or their face.
Currently in the testing phase, this feature will bring an additional layer of privacy and protection to WhatsApp since every encrypted chat will require a unique passcode in the form of a fingerprint, face lock, or password to be accessed. Hence, even if your WhatsApp platform is open and people surround you, no one can read your locked chats until you mention the passcode.
This function will secure not just the text messages that are exchanged between two persons in a conversation but also any media files, audio, or documents that are sent.
According to the article, in the event that an individual makes an attempt to open one of these restricted chats on WhatsApp and the authentication process is unsuccessful on many occasions. They will be required to clear the chat in order to be able to open it.
On the other hand, the “Lock Chat” function for WhatsApp chats is now undergoing testing for the beta version of Android. As soon as the feature gradually becomes available to the general public, it will also be made available to iOS users.
It has been rumored that the Lock Chat function would archive communications locked in a distinct folder. This will make it simpler to find the chats, but they will continue to be hidden and won’t be in your face.
The beta version of WhatsApp for Android 2.23.8.2 has just been released, and it can now be downloaded from the Google Play Store. The study also states that when the Lock Chat function is used, WhatsApp will not preserve any media or audio files that are transferred within encrypted chats to the gallery of the user’s smartphone.