WhatsApp has been working on the possibility of keeping temporary messages for some time; WABetaInfo colleagues have discovered a few small clues as to how the functionality could be implemented in the future. A screenshot (from the Desktop Beta app) shows how users of a group chat will be notified as soon as they enter the chat.
In essence, the warning explains that ephemeral messages are present in the group chat and that all users will be able to select (or deselect) them for retention. Group administrators may decide to impose unspecified limits in this regard.
It is quite clear that a stored ephemeral message will simply remain visible even after its timer reaches zero. There is a lack of more precise information on ancillary details and borderline cases (for example, what happens if the person who activated the retention of a message leaves the chat?
Does the retention have a maximum duration or is it indefinite?). In any case, there is a sensible rationale for this feature – chats and ephemeral messages improve privacy, but some crucial information may need exceptions and more flexibility on how to self-destruct.
The first traces of the possibility of preserving ephemeral messages emerged exactly two months ago. Apparently, the stored messages can be consulted in a dedicated section of the chat information menu, just like for multimedia files and links.
The first sightings concerned the official clients for Android and iOS (Beta of course), but it has always been believed that the functionality will be developed for all platforms – web and desktop included.
Meanwhile, just a few days ago, Mark Zuckerberg’s messaging platform finally announced the possibility of migrating the chat database from Android to iOS for everyone, after about a month of beta testing. We remind you that the reverse step, that is the migration from iOS to Android, has been available for some time, albeit for a limited number of devices.
If you like our news and you want to be the first to get notifications of the latest news, then follow us on Twitter and Facebook page and join our Telegram channel. Also, you can follow us on Google News for regular updates.