WhatsApp has rolled out a brand new characteristic that brings its messaging app into line with different social apps: the flexibility to ship a photograph or video that the recipient can view solely as soon as earlier than it self-destructs.
We first wrote about this characteristic again in June when it entered beta, but it surely’s now simply a regular a part of the app.
We’ll clarify in a number of easy steps easy methods to use the View As soon as characteristic… but in addition easy methods to get round it.
- Time to finish: 5 minutes
- Instruments required: None
Replace WhatsApp
Chris Martin / Foundry
You’ll be able to replace WhatsApp by visiting the Google Play Retailer or Apple App Retailer and checking for out there updates.
Discover a picture or video to share
Marie Black / Foundry
To ship a disappearing picture or video, open an current chat with a contact or start a brand new dialog. To connect a picture to a message you possibly can both faucet the digicam icon and take a brand new picture or video, or faucet the paperclip icon and choose one out of your Gallery.
Don’t hit Ship simply but…
Faucet the View As soon as icon
Marie Black / Foundry
You’ll discover a brand new icon has appeared within the textual content area simply to the left of the Ship button: a circle with a 1 within the center. Faucet this icon.
The primary time you accomplish that you’ll get a pop-up informing you that the “Photograph set to view as soon as” so will disappear when the recipient has opened and seen it as soon as. Tapping it’ll additionally see it flip from white to inexperienced so you recognize it’s switched on.
Ship the message
Marie Black / Foundry
Faucet the Ship button and a message will seem within the dialog thread that reveals the View As soon as icon and confirms {that a} picture or video has been despatched, however you might be unable to see the media itself.
After the media has been seen the message will change from ‘Photograph’ or ‘Video’ to ‘Opened’ and the 1 will disappear from the icon. Your recipient will see the identical message on their cellphone, and can now not be capable of view that media.
screenshot images on WhatsApp with out the sender realizing
Within the pop-up that seems whenever you first use View As soon as, you might be advised that it’s there to enhance privateness, however warned that the recipient can nonetheless take a screenshot or recording.
What WhatsApp doesn’t inform you is that not like different social apps (for instance
Snapchat and
Instagram), it is not going to notify you if somebody does precisely that. This implies your picture or video that you simply thought would self-destruct may really nonetheless be floating round someplace with out your information.
In response to
WABetaInfo, WhatsApp says that is in your personal good. Huh?
As a result of it’s so simple to get round mechanisms that forestall you taking a screenshot with out the sender realizing, WhatsApp says it doesn’t wish to lull customers right into a false sense of safety by permitting them to incorrectly assume {that a} screenshot can’t be taken with out their information.
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