Here’s something – of all of Meta’s splinter apps, WhatsApp has recently been the most active; it’s doing work. WhatsApp launched another privacy protection feature with the introduction of its new ‘Chat Lock’ option, which enables users to move private chats out of their main inbox, and into their own, password-protected folder in the app. For a bit more context, check out this trailer.
Lock It Down, Chat
As seen in the video above, one of the main use cases for Chat Lock is geared toward people who share their phone with others, like family members, which is fairly common in some regions. In developing markets like India, for example, lower-middle-class families often only have one device that’s shared by the family, with parents and siblings splitting time.
In situations like this, having the capacity to lock down certain chats could be a big benefit, and could provide more privacy for WhatsApp users. It does make sense, at least in this respect, given how there’s bound to be at least one instance of ‘peeping’ in situations where a single phone is shared between, say, 9 people.
“Locking a chat takes that thread out of the inbox and puts it behind its own folder that can only be accessed with your device password or biometric, like a fingerprint. It also automatically hides the contents of that chat in notifications, too.”
Even for non-sharing families, this could have a range of benefits. If you often leave a device where others can see it, there may be sensitive, private chats that you don’t want anyone else to see; most of us do, honestly speaking. This new process keeps such messages and threads hidden. There are also various other reasons why users may want some extra level of privacy for specific chats.
Users will be able to lock a chat by tapping the name of a one-to-one or group discussion and choosing the lock option.
“To reveal these chats, slowly pull down on your inbox and enter your phone password or biometric.”
The Wrap
WhatsApp also notes that it’ll release more features for Chat Lock over the coming months, including variable passwords for each chat, providing more ways to maintain privacy within the app. It’s probably not a major innovation of sorts for most WhatsApp users, but it could have a specific value in a range of cases, with even bigger potential for those who do share a device.
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