Whatsapp users can now choose to enable disappearing messages by default on all their one-on-one conversations. The internet messaging service has also introduced new durations for these disappearing messages — 24 hours and 90 days, in addition to the already existing 7-day timeframe. 

Whatsapp had introduced disappearing messages in November last year and, more recently, disappearing photos and videos that could only be viewed once in August this year. 

The company stated in an update posted Monday that they “believe disappearing messages along with end-to-end encryption are two crucial features that define what it means to be a private messaging service today and bring us one step closer to the feeling of an in-personal conversation.”

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Pulling a Houdini?

When enabled, all new one-on-one chats on Whatsapp will automatically disappear after the chosen duration. Whatsapp will also show a message in your chats that this is the default setting you’ve chosen, letting the other person know that the change isn’t personal and applies to all your chats. 

Apart from this, when creating a new group chat, you’ll also see a new option that lets you enable the same feature. The new feature is optional and does not affect or delete any of your existing chats. If users want a specific chat to remain permanent, they can always switch back to the usual mode. 

The now-Facebook owned Whatsapp has constantly been adding new security features to the platform to win back customers’ trust and demonstrate that they’re a safe platform. Recent antics pulled by Whatsapp, including the update to their privacy policy that allowed the app to share data with Facebook, had pushed a lot of their audience to alternative messaging apps like Signal and Telegram — better known for their security features. 

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