Say goodbye to snooping and hello to a world of clandestine conversations. Locking away secrets and sealing conversations with a touch of intrigue, WhatsApp is introducing its new “Chat Lock” feature. With this feature, WhatsApp is looking to ensure that the chats of users will be tucked away in a fortress of privacy, shielded from prying eyes and protected by a digital combination lock.
In a blog post, social media company Meta announced the reveal of the Chat Lock feature to make it easier to keep conversations more private. According to the company, locked chats will be safe in a separate folder, and users can lock them using a password or biometric authentication. If you have noticed its similarity with Apple’s hidden photos feature for iCloud, you are not the only one.
Locking the conversations behind passwords or biometrics means that even if someone gains access to a user’s device, they won’t be able to read the contents of the locked chats without the required authentication. Additionally, notifications from these conversations will no longer display the sender’s name or reveal the message content, further enhancing privacy and preventing inadvertent exposure.
This new addition comes as a response to the growing demand for enhanced privacy measures and the need for users to have more control over their conversations. With the increasing concerns surrounding data privacy and security breaches, messaging platforms like WhatsApp are taking proactive steps to address these issues and provide users with the tools to safeguard their personal information.
By implementing the Chat Lock feature, WhatsApp aims to offer users peace of mind when it comes to their private conversations. It ensures that sensitive information remains protected, even in situations where the device itself may be compromised. Users can, post-authentication, rest assured that their personal and confidential discussions will stay confidential within the app. As messaging platforms continue to evolve and adapt to the changing landscape of digital communication, features like Chat Lock serve as an important step forward in empowering users to take control of their online privacy. With this new feature, WhatsApp demonstrates its dedication to providing a secure and private environment for its users.
“We believe this feature will be great for people who share their phones from time to time with a family member, or in moments where someone else is holding your phone at the exact moment an extra-special chat arrives,” Meta wrote in the blog post. The feature is rolling out to users across the globe starting today. Going forward, the parent company of WhatsApp, Instagram, and Facebook will add more options for Chat Lock, such as locks for companion devices and allowing users to create custom passwords for their chats which are different from that of their phone’s.
In order to lock some of their most intimate conversations, users need to download or update WhatsApp to the latest version on both Android and iOS devices. Then, they need to go to the specific chat that they would like to lock, and click on the profile picture. This will show a new “chat lock” option right below the disappearing message menu, and users need to enable the chat lock and authenticate using a or biometrics. To access locked chats, they can simply swipe down on the WhatsApp home page to access them.
