California (Web Desk) — WhatsApp has started testing a new feature called “Restricted Chats” for Android beta users, aimed at providing specific individual conversations with additional protection beyond the existing end-to-end encryption.
The feature has been designed to protect against potential threats through which external sources, modified web clients, or artificial intelligence-based assistants could access users’ conversations through linked devices.
Once Restricted Chat is enabled, the relevant conversation will no longer be available on WhatsApp Web, other phones, or other linked devices, reducing the possibility of sensitive messages being viewed or transferred from an additional device.
In addition, images and other media received in such chats will not be automatically saved to the phone’s gallery, while the option to export the conversation will also be disabled. This will give users greater control over the external use of their private conversations and media.
Meta’s artificial intelligence features will also not be available in Restricted Chats, limiting another way in which chat content could be analyzed through artificial intelligence features.
The feature is currently being rolled out only to Android beta testers, while a final date for its availability to general users has not yet been announced.