In its latest beta release, WhatsApp is introducing an important privacy feature designed to address one of the platform’s most persistent problems — spam.
According to GSM Arena, this new feature available in beta version 2.24.18.2 for Android introduces a username PIN system, which aims to improve user security and curb unwanted messages.
This new functionality allows WhatsApp users to set a four-digit PIN in addition to their username.
The PIN acts as an additional layer of security, ensuring that users who have never interacted with you before cannot send you messages just by knowing your username.
According to GSM Arena, this measure will significantly reduce spam and increase the privacy of WhatsApp users.
According to GSM Arena, a company spokesperson said, “Once implemented, this feature will significantly reduce spam, which has been a prevalent problem on WhatsApp.”
For the PIN feature, anyone who wants to message you for the first time will need to know both your username and the PIN you have set.
Conversely, contacts you’ve previously interacted with will not be affected by the new username and PIN system.
It will be seamless to use the username for these existing connections, allowing the current chat to continue running as normal.
Despite the promising benefits of this new feature, it is still in the beta testing phase, and there is no set timeline for its official release.
According to GSM Arena, given WhatsApp’s typical development cycle, it may take some time for the username and PIN features to become available to the general public, and they are unlikely to launch before the end of the year.
As WhatsApp continues to work on improving this feature, users are encouraged to stay updated on its progress through future beta releases.
The introduction of Username PIN is a proactive step taken by WhatsApp towards addressing privacy concerns and improving the overall user experience on the platform.
(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)
