WhatsApp is reportedly working on a fingerprint authentication feature to protect its users' chats from being seen by others.
According to WABetaInfo, a fan site that tests new WhatsApp features early, the feature is currently under development in Beta for Android 2.19.3 version. The fingerprint authentication feature will be available within the app under a new section, as mentioned in the report.
Once you enable the fingerprint feature, your WhatsApp will be completely protected from other users of your phone. This feature was first reported to come for iOS users and it’s good to see Android users getting the option.
This feature would be available in future for any Android user (and for iOS users too) having Android 6.0 Marshmallow and newer operating systems and with devices that carry a fingerprint sensor.
After working to implement Face ID and Touch ID features on iOS (that aren’t available yet for development reasons), WhatsApp has finally started to work on the Authentication feature on Android, using your Fingerprint.WABetaInfo
Back in October 2018, the same blog highlighted that WhatsApp chats for iPhone will get biometric unlocking via Face ID or Touch ID in the coming weeks.
The biometric support, as claimed by the report in October 2018, will be available to iPhones with fingerprint sensor running on iOS 8 or later. And for face ID, you’ll get this support on iPhone X, XR, XS and XS Max among others.
The touch/face ID will be accessible from the privacy settings section on iPhones, which will be available once WhatsApp publicly offers the feature. But more than anything else, what we’re really hoping to get on WhatsApp this year, is the dark mode, which has become a go-to for various Android users across the globe.
(At The Quint, we are answerable only to our audience. Play an active role in shaping our journalism by becoming a member. Because the truth is worth it.)