WhatsApp shared through a post that with its all-new feature of end-to-end encrypted backups, no other messaging service at the company’s scale will match this level of security to its users for their chats.
Facebook-owned instant messaging platform WhatsApp is in talks to roll out its new feature which will give the platform’s 2 billion users the choice to encrypt their chat history backup in iCloud or Google Drive for both iOS as well as Android respectively.
With this move, WhatsApp has overcome one of its bottlenecks which was exploited by governments with the view of obtaining private conversation between different users.
WhatsApp’s privacy issue regarding chat backup was spotlighted reportedly bringing into notice that law enforcing agencies worldwide have had access to the private conversation between suspect individuals on the platform, thereby exploiting its technicality.
The platform announced earlier that it would roll out end-to-end encrypted backup after it tested the latest feature in July, 2021. WhatsApp has been using end-to-encryption for chats; however, the chat history backups were not encrypted.
Launching its up-to-date feature, WhatsApp now allows its users to encrypt their backup for chats on Google Drive or iCloud for Android and iOS users.
How to use the end-to-end encrypted backup feature of WhatsApp?
In order to create an end-to-end encrypted backup, users will have to make sure they are using the updated version of WhatsApp. Now, to create a backup, users will navigate to the option Settings, select Chats, click on the option ‘Chat Backups’, and finally choose ‘End-to-End Encrypted Backup’.
The user can now secure their end-to-end encrypted backup with either a password depending on the user’s choice or a 64-digit encryption key which would be confidential and known by only the user. Neither the platform nor the backup service provider will be given access to unlock the encryption key or password.
WhatsApp shared through a post that with its all-new feature of end-to-end encrypted backups, no other messaging service at the company’s scale will match this level of security to its users for their chats.
The company added that it has been offering its users the choice to backup their chats on WhatsApp so that they are allowed to restore their conversations in the app if they change or lose the device. The company has now launched a brand new feature which allows the iOS as well as Android users to have a choice to build their own end-to-end encrypted backup as an “additional layer of security” for those who want it. The chat history backup created using WhatsApp’s end-to-end encrypted backup feature will only be accessible to the one who created it, keeping in mind the users’ privacy and security. No other user or individual will be allowed to unlock their backup including WhatsApp itself. The company further added, “…Neither WhatsApp nor the backup service provider (like Apple) will be able to access their end-to-end encryption key or their end-to-end encrypted backup.”
As reported by the India Today, WhatsApp is also in talks to be working on a few other features which the platform will be launching in 2021, apart from the already launched end-to-end encrypted backup feature. Here are those upcoming features:
- Multiple device support– WhatsApp is reportedly working on its feature of multiple device support system which will allow the users to transfer their chats from one device to another. The development was confirmed by WhatsApp’s CEO Will Cathcart. Unlike the present feature which only supports 2 devices at once, WhatsApp’s forthcoming multiple device support will allow users to access up to 4 devices from one account.
- Read later– WhatsApp is expected to roll out its ‘Read later’ feature which will replace the platform’s existing Archive Chats feature on both iOS as well as Android. If a user uses this feature by moving the chats to ‘Read later’, WhatsApp will stop sending notifications for the selected chat.
- Instagram Reels– Instagram is a short video feature which was added on Instagram, a picture-sharing platform, after the government banned the same service providing platform TikTok.
WhatsApp is working on a new feature which will allow users to watch Instagram reels from the app itself.
- Logout option– India Today reported that WhatsApp is expected to replace the option of ‘Delete Account’ with its upcoming ‘Logout’ button for its users. This update will allow users to log out from the platform instead of deleting it, competing with the likes of the same feature provided by Instagram and Facebook.
WhatsApp was also in the highlights around mid-September, 2021, to be working on a feature to transcribe voice notes. The platform claimed that with the help of these transcriptions, users will be able to read what has been addressed in a voice message without the actual need of listening to the whole note.
