OUR whatsapp announced a number of new privacy settings that, among other things, will allow users to read their messages without the knowledge of others.

The platform will soon allow users to control who can see when they’re online, block screenshots for certain posts, and leave groups without notifying other members.

WhatsApp has over 2 billion users worldwide and is owned by Facebook’s parent company Meta. Even announcing the changes to Facebook and Instagram, the company’s CEO Mark Zuckerberg said the company “will continue to create new ways to protect user messages and keep them private and secure, just like conversations between loved ones.”

WhatsApp has long touted the use of end-to-end encryption, which means that only the sender and recipient of a message can see its content. Also, like other private messaging platforms, it already allows users to send messages that disappear after a set period of time.

However, last year WhatsApp came under scrutiny following an update to its terms of use.

At the time, many users raised concerns about the part of WhatsApp’s privacy policy that detailed how much data was shared with Facebook, whose reputation – when it comes to protecting user data – had suffered.

The said update has caused some to turn to the popular Signal platform.

Facebook attempted to clarify the policy, saying its data-sharing practices are nothing new and “does not affect how people communicate privately, with friends and family members.”

Now, two new features introduced on the platform, which allow the user to choose who can see that they are online, as well as silently leave groups, will become available this month.

The screenshot blocking tool, which will be used for read-only messages, is still in testing and will be available at a later date, according to WhatsApp.

^{Source: CNN Business}