WhatsApp has announced a set of privacy updates, including the ability to leave group chats without notifying every member and screenshot protection for disappearing media.
Under the changes, only group administrators will be notified when a user leaves a group. Previously, all members received a departure notification, a feature that many users found awkward, particularly in large or professional groups.
Screenshot protection for View Once
WhatsApp also said it would make it harder to capture screenshots of photos and videos sent with the View Once feature enabled. View Once, introduced in 2021, allows users to send media that disappears after being opened, but until now recipients could still take screenshots.
“We’ll keep building new ways to protect your messages and keep them as private and secure as face-to-face conversations,” the Meta-owned messaging service said.
Part of broader privacy push
The updates form part of a series of privacy improvements WhatsApp has been rolling out since introducing end-to-end encrypted backups in late 2021. The company has increasingly positioned privacy as a core differentiator against competing messaging platforms.
The silent group exit and screenshot blocking features were expected to roll out in the weeks following the August 2022 announcement.
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