WhatsApp is working on a significant upgrade to its disappearing messages mechanism, which will grant users much greater control over their privacy. Until now, when you activated the disappearing messages option, the countdown toward their deletion began the moment you pressed the send button – regardless of whether the other party managed to see them at all. Now, the company is testing a new option that will make the process much more logical and efficient.
The new feature, named "After reading," was revealed by the website WABetaInfo in the latest beta versions of the application for iOS and Android operating systems. The implication is that the temporary message's timer will "hold its breath" and will not start running until the recipient actually opens the conversation window and reads the content.
Under the new settings that will appear in the application's timer menu, users will be able to choose between several timed options from the moment of reading: 5 minutes, 1 hour, or 12 hours. As soon as the selected time elapses, the message will be completely and automatically deleted from the device. This addition is expected to be particularly helpful for users who tend to converse about sensitive topics, but it could also save valuable storage space on the devices of "heavy" users who do not require a long–term chat history.
The new option will be available as part of the default conversation settings or for specific chats, at the user's choice. Currently, the feature is open to a limited number of beta testers, but estimates suggest that WhatsApp will expand access to all users over the coming weeks.