WhatsApp Will Soon Let You Hide Your 'Last Seen' Status From Specific Contacts

[MacRumors]

WhatsApp is working on giving users the option to adjust the visibility of their "Last Seen" status on a contact-by-contact basis, according to a new report from forthcoming-feature specialist WABetaInfo.

As regular WhatsApp users will know, the "Last Seen" status of a contact sits atop the conversation thread, informing you when that contact last opened and was active on the app.

Currently, you can disable your "Last Seen" status so that other contacts can't see when you were last online, but the setting's options are limited to "Everyone," "My Contacts," and "Nobody," and there's no way to make exceptions for individual contacts.

However, that looks set to change, based on options unearthed by WABetaInfo in a beta version of WhatsApp. In the Privacy settings, the messaging platform is adding the option "My Contacts Except..." which will let you select specific contacts so that they don't see when the last time was that you were active on the messaging network.

Although it's worth noting that if you disable your last seen status for specific contacts, you won't be able to see theirs either.

The new "My Contacts Except..." option is also evident in the privacy settings for a user's profile picture and "About" information, indicating WhatsApp's intention to bring more granular settings to the app's privacy options as a whole.

As usual, it's unclear when the new options will go live, but given they were discovered on iOS, expect them to appear on iPhone first, with the Android version to follow.

Article Link: WhatsApp Will Soon Let You Hide Your 'Last Seen' Status From Specific Contacts

 

[0194839]

I’d rather see they add the option: “to appear offline”.

 

[jonppa]

Holy crap. I cannot believe how fast we have arrived in this kind of technology world.

I'm actually so happy that I've never started using WA. But at the same time scared..

 

[NARadyk]

Aka, all work related people.

 

[daxiel22]

Can they just focus on multi-device feature please?

 

[Germany12Points]

I’d rather see they add the option: “to appear offline”.

Exactly! I will only install WhatsApp when no one can see that I am currently using the app. I find it IMPOSSIBLE that this is not possible until today!
Hope dies last.

 

[crisneat]

I’d rather see they add the option: “to appear offline”.

Yes please

 

[Seanm87]

I turn this off for everyone. Why does anyone need to see when I last looked at my phone? Creepy as hell

They also need to stop read receipts for group chats. You can disable it for so single chats but not group. Why?

 

[yellow8]

This is good news!

 

[zilchfox]

This has been a feature forever on Telegram.

 

[velocityg4]

I can’t imagine wanting anyone to know when I was last online or currently active. Nor caring about that status from others. Same goes with read receipts and such. I respond in a timely manner if there’s anything worth saying or obligatory response to a chatty friend or family member.

Not that I’d use WhatsApp or anything associated with Facebook. Just speaking about any communication system in general.

 

[Mrjetsondc]

My mom LOVES what’s app but I won’t touch it. Anything Facebook has its hands in I avoid.

 

[EuroChilli]

This thread prompted me to check my settings. I've had the double blue tick thingy off for a while. Now, no one can see when I was last online, not even my wife. If someone wants to know if I got their message, and when I was last online, they can just call me.

 

[dvanwinkle]

Can they just focus on multi-device feature please?

WhatsApp has plenty of employees to focus in more than one area.

 

[deadlock]

Will this come before or after the promised ability to have custom backgrounds per chat?

 

[hb_8919]

I have stopped using WA its too distracting, i wish iMessages becomes cross platform.

 

[Steve121178]

My mom LOVES what’s app but I won’t touch it. Anything Facebook has its hands in I avoid.

It's unavoidable as it's the messaging "standard" for a lot of the world.

I held off as long as I could but I've been using it for 3 years now. It's not that bad, just lacks a lot of features that Telegram has had since day 1.

I'd still rather not use it, but I'd then be missing a ton of messages from family and friends.

 

[blairh]

I prefer being able to see when someone has last seen my message. Eliminates the ability to lie to someone about it.

 

[zorinlynx]

Another feature Telegram had since the beginning!

 

[uptownnyc]

How Facebook Undermines Privacy Protections for Its 2 Billion WhatsApp Users​

How Facebook Undermines Privacy Protections for Its 2 Billion WhatsApp Users

WhatsApp assures users that no one can see their messages — but the company has an extensive monitoring operation and regularly shares personal information with prosecutors.

www.propublica.org

 

[saudade]

Thiz ll be gre8 to hide from some of my jealous females. I use thiz feature a lot 2 cntrl last time they were online 2 c if they r chatting with some male and things like that. Gre8 feature i love fb whatsup

 

[Shadows_lord]

Inserting *what year is it?* meme as a Telegram user.

 

[B4U]

Can we also set it to not allow FailBook to mess with it?

 

[Atlantico]

I dropped Whatsapp for Telegram when Facebook took over.

I have had it with the big tech conglomerates.

 

[thera]

Thx. And where is app for iPad?