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WATCH: Chat on WhatsApp in secret! Here’s how to hide when you’re online
Ah, bliss! You can finally sneak on WhatsApp without your friends knowing when you're online. Here's how:
Photo: iStock, and screengrab from Play Store review.
WhatsApp has, at long last, rolled out a feature which enables users to hide their online status. The feature was first announced back in August.
At the time, Meta said privacy was in its DNA, and that the team wanted to give users “more control” over their WhatsApp experience.
Latest WhatsApp update
WATCH: Hide when you’re online
Your phone, your rules. You decide who sees when you’re online ???? pic.twitter.com/6lvN1OFIAt
— WhatsApp (@WhatsApp) November 3, 2022
Meta explains: We’ve all had times when we wanted to check our WhatsApp privately”.
“For the moments you want to keep your online presence private, we’re introducing the ability to select who can and can’t see when you’re online”.
Even though some users might prefer seeing when their friends and family are online because it helps them feel connected, others – like yours truly – prefer to use the app incognito.
How to hide your online status
The option to hide your online status was also rolled out to a small group of users. The developers’ team now confirmed that the feature is out in full force.
Naturally, I had to activate it immediately – it’s a feature I’ve been asking for since 2018.
Personal WhatsApp
If you’re using the standard app, simply go to the Privacy menu, select Last Seen and Online, and you’ll see the new options under the Last Seen menu.
Click here to enlarge the image below.
Business WhatsApp
It works pretty much the same way on Business WhatsApp, except you’ll need to head over to Account first. From there, select Privacy.
The Privacy menu on Business WhatApp works the same as on the original app: Just open Last Seen and Online, and select your preference.
Click here to enlarge the image below.
ALSO READ: WhatsApp back online after global outage
Update to edit messages
Android users in the beta programme are testing the ability to edit messages on WhatsApp, a new feature currently under development.
The feature was included in the beta programme back in September, and WhatsApp now confirmed that the same feature will be implemented in an update of the iOS beta app.
As seen in the beta testers’ Discord group, users will have 15 minutes to edit their text messages after being sent.
Other WhatsApp updates
Some of the other features which rolled out in August, included leaving groups silently and blocking a user from taking a screenshot on ‘View Once’ messages.
Meta also officially launched Communities this week, which offer larger, structured discussion groups.
Meta CEO Mark Zuckerburg said Communities would “make groups better by enabling sub-groups, multiple threads, announcement channels and more”.
NOW WATCH: WhatsApp Communities now available
