WhatsApp has an option “View Once” which allows you to send ephemeral images and videos to your contacts. They can only be opened once if you choose this option.
The number of WhatsApp app users has skyrocketed. This secure messaging service ranks unsurprisingly among the most used in the world with Messenger and Viber. Thus, WhatsApp experiences recurring updates that provide access to new features.
WhatsApp is inspired in particular by Snapchat. The instant messaging service run by Facebook implemented a feature on August 3, 2021 to send ephemeral photos. After a single consultation, the media will disappear from the recipient’s phone.
The company sells its functionality as providing “more control over privacy» and offering «more privacy“. Beautiful promises, after a controversy concerning the new conditions of use of the service.
How does sending a temporary photo on WhatsApp work?
To test this feature, here’s how.
- Meet in a whatsapp chat
- Press the trombone (Android) or the button + (iOS)
- Choose Camera Where Gallery and capture or select the photo you want to send
- Before pressing the send icon, click on the circled 1 in the photo caption field
- A message will tell you that “single view is enabled on this photo”
- You can send it to your recipient!
The photo will appear hidden in the thread. Your recipient will be able to open the message once by clicking on it, but as soon as the back button is clicked, the photo will disappear from the conversation. No option to save the photo is offered.
What are the limits ?
WhatsApp states that “single-view photos and videos are protected by end-to-end encryptionlike the rest of WhatsApp messages. In contrast, nothing prevents the recipient from taking a screenshot content sent. If so, the sending phone will not receive notifications. So be careful when sending messages.
Ephemeral photos and videos will expire after 14 days if not viewed. On the other hand, WhatsApp will keep an (encrypted) copy “for a few weekson its servers. Recipients can also report the photo or video if the content is inappropriate. The content will then be transmitted to WhatsApp.