WhatsApp beta for Android 2.25.12.21: what's new?

WhatsApp has released a new Android update through the Google Play Beta Program, bringing the version up to 2.25.12.21.
What's new in this update? WhatsApp is working on a feature to manage the advanced chat privacy option, and it will be available in a future update!

In the article about the WhatsApp beta for Android 2.25.10.14 update, we announced that a feature to notify users when the advanced chat privacy option changes is under development. This feature will give users greater control over their conversations by preventing media from being automatically saved to their device gallery. Additionally, it will allow users to disable the ability to export the entire conversation, helping to protect sensitive information and reduce the risk of unauthorized data sharing. Although this feature is still in development, WhatsApp appears to be actively refining the advanced chat privacy feature ahead of its official beta release, aiming to provide users with a more optimized experience from the outset. Following the release of the latest WhatsApp beta for Android 2.25.12.21 update, which is available on the Google Play Store, we discovered that WhatsApp is working on a feature to manage the advanced chat privacy option!

As you can see from the attached screenshot, WhatsApp is exploring the implementation of a feature that will allow users to manage the advanced chat privacy option, scheduled for release in a future update. Users will be able to enable this feature on a chat level, giving them the flexibility to decide where to turn it on or off. When the advanced chat privacy feature is activated, media such as images and videos will no longer be automatically saved to the device's gallery. This will help users protect their privacy by ensuring that their images and videos remain within WhatsApp, preventing it from being automatically stored in the device's gallery where it could be more easily accessed. However, users will still have the option to manually save specific media to their device's gallery.

This option will also disable the ability to export the entire chat history for those chats where the advanced chat privacy option is enabled. Anyone attempting to export the conversation will be prevented from doing so, adding another safeguard for private information. Additionally, when this feature is activated, users will not be able to interact with Meta AI manually within that conversation. If a user wants to experience this level of privacy in specific chats, they will need to manually enable the option for each chat where they wish to apply it.

Since anyone in the conversation can enable or disable this feature, WhatsApp will notify users whenever the status of the advanced chat privacy feature changes, as announced in the article about the WhatsApp beta for Android 2.25.11.2 update. This ensures transparency and keeps everyone informed about the privacy settings in the conversation. Whether someone enables or disables the feature, all participants will be alerted, so they can be aware of any changes to the chat privacy settings.

It’s important to note that this feature will be optional in chats and groups. Users will have the choice to activate it only in the chats where they feel it's necessary. This ensures that users can maintain control over their privacy without affecting every conversation. WhatsApp is providing this option as a way for users to have greater flexibility in managing their conversations according to their privacy preferences.

WhatsApp aims to ensure that users have control over how their conversations are handled by allowing them to manage the advanced chat privacy feature on a chat level, while also promoting transparency among chat participants. As we previously announced, this feature will still allow message forwarding and screenshots, as it focuses on protecting entire conversations rather than individual messages. This approach ensures that the overall privacy of the chat is maintained without restricting the basic functionality of sharing or exporting specific content within the conversation.

A feature to manage the advanced chat privacy option 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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