Meta is enhancing user privacy on WhatsApp by extending its View Once' functionality to desktop and web platforms aimed at the secure dissemination of confidential content. This feature, first spotted by WABetaInfo and yet to be officially announced by the company, mirrors the privacy tool initially deployed to the mobile version of the app in 2022. It allows users to send images and videos that disappear after a single viewing, preventing any form of saving, sharing, or malicious exploitation of sensitive material.
According to WABetaInfo's findings, the demand for bringing the feature to the desktop came from user feedback complaining about the limited desktop functionality. Meta has taken note and is now gradually introducing the option to desktop users, although the implementation has taken over a year since its mobile release.
It's important to note a few subtleties about the feature:
WhatsApp's Help Center outlines that the ephemeral media must be viewed within 14 days, or it will be automatically expunged. Screenshot protection comes standard with the feature, but only for recipients using the latest version of WhatsApp, as outdated versions may still allow the capturing of the content. Meta urges users to send View Once messages only to people they truly trust, and while plans are in motion to address the screenshot capability discrepancies, a timeline for this fix remains unspecified.
Currently, the feature does not support bulk sending of View Once media; users must send such files individually. As pointed out by Windows Central, viewers can replay temporary videos multiple times, provided they do not navigate away from the interface or hit play prematurely, which would revoke access to the content.
The rollout is available to users on both Windows and macOS, with WABetaInfo indicating that the update is being introduced in phases, meaning it is only accessible to a select cohort for now. Users are encouraged to stay vigilant for the update's full release.
For those looking to utilize the View Once feature on a desktop, the process is straightforward. On launching WhatsApp, select a conversation, hit the attachment icon adjacent to the chat box, and choose an image. Look for the icon depicting a '1' inside a disappearing loop above the send button and click it to enable View Once. This action ensures the media vanishes as soon as it is closed by the recipient.
The functionality and steps are the same for users accessing WhatsApp via a web browser despite the differing interface layout.