Meta-owned WhatsApp recently announced that it is introducing support for disappearing voice messages to improve user privacy and security within the app.
WhatsApp Introduces Support For Disappearing Voice Messages
The new feature allows users to send a voice message that will disappear or self-destruct once it is listened to by the recipient. It is similar to the “View Once” functionality introduced in 2021 for photos and videos on all social media platforms like Facebook, Instagram, and even WhatsApp to add another layer of privacy to your messages.
A “one-time” icon distinctly marks the voice messages to indicate to the recipient that the message can be listened to only once before it disappears, preventing the voice note from being exported, forwarded, saved, starred, shared, or recorded.
“We introduced View Once for photos and videos back in 2021 to add another layer of privacy to your messages. Today, we’re excited to announce you can now send a voice message that will disappear once listened to,” the company said in a blog post announcing the feature.
“For reading out your credit card details to a friend, or when you’re planning a surprise, you can now also share sensitive information over voice message with added peace of mind. For consistency with View Once photos and videos, View Once voice messages are clearly marked with the ‘one-time’ icon and can only be played one time.”
By default, the voice messages are protected with end-to-end encryption, similar to “View Once” photos and videos, which means only the sender and the recipient can see or hear the message, WhatsApp says.
“As with all your personal messages, WhatsApp protects your voice messages with end-to-end encryption by default, and View Once is just another example of our continued privacy innovation,” said the company.
To send a disappearing voice message, users just need to record their message and then tap on the new one-time icon before sending it. Once the recipient listens to the message, it will then disappear from their chat history.
WhatsApp’s new “View Once” feature for voice messages is expected to roll out globally over the coming days.