WhatsApp beta for Android 2.24.17.24: what's new?

WhatsApp is rolling out a new update through the Google Play Beta Program, bringing the version up to 2.24.17.24.
What's new in this update? WhatsApp is working on a feature to block messages from unknown accounts, and it will be available in a future update!

In the article about the WhatsApp beta for Android 2.24.8.11 update, we announced that WhatsApp was rolling out a privacy feature to disable link previews. This feature allows users to turn off the automatic generation of link previews for the links they share, reducing the risk of exposing their browsing activity to third-party entities. It appears that WhatsApp is now committed to bringing more security features to the app, enhancing user privacy and control. Thanks to the latest WhatsApp beta for Android 2.24.17.24 update, which is available on the Google Play Store, we discovered that WhatsApp is working on a feature to block messages from unknown accounts!

As you can see from the attached screenshot, WhatsApp is exploring the implementation of a new privacy feature to block messages from unknown accounts, scheduled for release in a future update of the app. When this option is enabled, WhatsApp will automatically block messages from unknown accounts if they exceed a certain volume, protecting users from unwanted or potentially harmful communications. Additionally, this feature is designed to improve device performance by reducing the influx of spam and unwanted messages that can strain the app. Such accounts can flood users with a high volume of messages in a short period, which can overwhelm the app and negatively impact device performance. By enabling the ability to block unknown account messages, the feature will significantly reduce the amount of data the app needs to process.

WhatsApp currently employs automated tools to detect and filter out malicious actors on the platform while preserving privacy, including algorithms that identify suspicious behavior and bulk messaging. However, with the introduction of this new feature, WhatsApp will offer users an additional layer of control. By enabling this option, users can proactively block messages from unknown accounts that exceed a certain threshold, as this will allow them to further protect their account from being overwhelmed by spam. By filtering out excessive messages from unknown sources, this feature will also help to minimize the risk of phishing attempts and malicious content, which can compromise the device performance and storage.

A feature to block messages from unknown accounts is under development and it will be available in a future update. We will keep you updated with an additional article as soon as we have more details to share about this feature.

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