WhatsApp to allow default disappearing messages, provide greater control

WhatsApp said on Monday that the users will now have the option to turn on disappearing messages by default for all new chats and also control how long they want the messages to be visible.

When enabled, all new one-on-one chats either you or another person starts will set to disappear at your chosen duration. It has also added a new option of creating a group chat that lets you turn it on for groups you create. This new feature is optional and does not change or delete any of the user’s existing chats.

The company is also adding two new durations for disappearing messages -- 24 hours and 90 days, as well as the existing option of seven days. It introduced disappearing messages last year in November, and more recently a way for photos and videos to immediately disappear after being viewed once. 

For people who choose to switch on default disappearing messages, WhatsApp will display a message in their chats that tells people this is the default the other person has chosen. 

“This makes clear it's nothing personal - it's a choice you've made about how you want to communicate with everyone on WhatsApp moving forward. Though of course, if you need a particular conversation to remain permanent, it’s easy to switch a chat back,” the company said. 

To get started, users can go to their 'Privacy settings' and select ‘Default Message Timer.’ 

If a user creates a backup before a message disappears, the disappearing message will be included in the backup. Disappearing messages will be deleted when a user restores from a backup.