WhatsApp: new privacy features being introduced to the app - including changes to View Once and online status

As part of a privacy update to the messaging app, WhatsApp will allow users to leave group chats without notifying others, and control who can see when they are online.

Currently, when a user leaves a group chat, a notification appears at the bottom of the conversation informing the remaining members of the group who has left.

The new features, according to the Meta-owned messaging platform, aim to improve the privacy of online conversations.

Around two billion people use Whatsapp every day, with the app part of Zuckerberg’s evergrowing empire that includes both Instagram and Facebook.

But what else is new?

Here is everything you need to know.

What else is new?

Users will also be able to prevent others from taking screenshots of View Once messages - which are designed to disappear after being opened - as part of the update, which will be released later this month.

WhatsApp said the screenshot blocking tool is currently being tested and will be available to users soon.

And, while users can already disable a feature that alerts others when they have read a message, it has previously been impossible to conceal the fact that a user was online and using WhatsApp.

That will change with the release of the new update.

Why are the changes being made?

Some campaigners have expressed concern about the end-to-end encryption used to secure conversations on WhatsApp and other platforms, claiming that it allows criminals to avoid detection.

Mark Zuckerberg, who studied at Harvard University for two years, said the new features being rolled out by Whatsapp are aimed to keep improving the privacy around online conversations.

In a post announcing the WhatsApp update, Meta boss Mark Zuckerberg said: “We’ll keep building new ways to protect your messages and keep them as private and secure as face-to-face conversations.”

Ami Vora, WhatsApp’s head of product, said the platform was focused on building features that “empower people to have more control and privacy over their messages”.

“Over the years, we’ve added interlocking layers of protection to help keep their conversations secure, and the new features is one way we continue to deliver on our commitment to keep messages private,” she said.

When is the update released?

WhatsApp has not confirmed exactly when the new features will be rolling out, but they are expected to be made available to users in the next month.