WhatsApp is a cross-platform, centralised instant messaging and voice-over-IP messaging service owned by Meta Platforms. It’s an easy and fast way to send texts, voice messages as well as video messages, voice-call and video-call someone, along with sharing documents, images, location details, as well as other content.

The WhatsApp application runs on mobile-phones, as well as can also be accessed from computers through the WhatsApp Web. To access WhatsApp services, users require a mobile-phone contact number for signing up. In the year 2018, WhatsApp launched a global business application called WhatsApp Business for communicating with any WhatsApp Business client.

 

 

The Journey Of WhatsApp

The WhatsApp service was developed by WhatsApp Inc., which is situated in Mountain View, California, and was later acquired by Facebook in the year 2014 for around $19.3 billion US dollars. WhatsApp turned out to be the world’s most-used messaging application by the year 2015.

WhatsApp was downloaded by over 2-billion people worldwide by the year 2020. By the year 2016, WhatsApp had turned out to be the primary Internet communication means in regions that included the Indian subcontinent, Latin America, as well as large parts of the European and African continents.

 

WhatsApp: Facing Criticism & Flak

WhatsApp faced criticism for initially lacking enough level of encryption to deliver any information in the form of plaintext. Encryption was first incorporated in the year 2012. The addition of end-to-end encryption was completely implemented in the year 2016 subsequent to two-years of processing.

As of September 2021, WhatsApp is known to make wider-ranging use of outside contractors as well as Artificial Intelligence to analyse messages of users, images, along with videos (those that get flagged by other users as being abusive); it is then the responsibility of the law enforcement metadata that includes critical account as well as location information.

 

 

WhatsApp Introduces Its Newest Feature

WhatsApp announced its newest feature for its global users recently. Subsequent to introducing its View Once feature for photos as well as videos in the year 2021, WhatsApp has now extended this feature to voice messages as well. This signifies that any user can now send voice messages, which will disappear once the recipient at the other end listens to them.

As per WhatsApp, this newest feature is a blessing to share sensitive information, such as details of a credit card or making plans for surprises. Just like the View Once photos as well as videos feature, voice messages will be marked with a one-time icon, which will be played only once.

As per WhatsApp, this newest addition for view once voice messages will also be protected with the end-to-end encryption feature by default. The global messaging app has declared that the View Once voice message feature will roll out worldwide over the coming weeks. This will be a great addition, as users can now send sensitive voice messages without any worry of misuse.

 

Using The View Once For Voice Messages Feature

To send images, voice messages, as well as videos that are meant to disappear after recipients open them once, users need to choose the View Once option every time. Once delivered, the recipient cannot access the message again. To ensure that the recipient has opened the View Once image, video, or voice message, the sender needs to have the read receipts option turned on.

 

 

Important Things To Remember

Only send View Once images, voice messages, and videos to individuals you fully trust. Keep in mind that there are options for your View Once media or voice messages to get saved. For instance, recipients can capture a photo or record a video of your View Once media with their camera or any other device prior to it disappearing. Encrypted media might get stored for weeks on WhatsApp’s own servers after you have delivered it. If the recipient decides to report any View Once video media or voice messages, the data will be delivered to WhatsApp.

 

Receiving Any View Once Media & Voice Messages

After receiving any View Once image, video, or voice message, the recipient will have to open the media within the next 14-days of it being delivered. Otherwise, the View Once media will automatically be deleted from the chat. Recipients cannot forward, star, save, or share images, videos, or voice messages that were received or delivered with View Once media being allowed. An user can retrieve View Once video as well as voice messages from backups if the media remains unopened during backing up. If the sent media is opened, it won’t get included in the backup as well as cannot be restored.

 

 

Ending Note

Being the most useful platform to communicate with individuals as well as groups, WhatsApp has carved a place for itself in the entire world. An individual can send any files, documents, images, as well as other forms of data with a single action of click. WhatsApp has become the foremost information-sharing medium in different institutions, such as universities along with in schools.

WhatsApp is a handy tool to stay connected with the entire world through the Internet. Sending and receiving any kind of media has become seamlessly easy and stress-free since the arrival of WhatsApp. Students as well as working professionals can stay connected with their peers. Members of any family can stay connected with each other so easily these days. WhatsApp is undoubtedly the best tool for 24-hour connectivity across the world.