WhatsApp is at it again with its constant privacy updates. This time around, the long-awaited change will be made. The WhatsApp online status will now be removable. This update is what most WhatsApp users have been looking forward to for years. In past years, we’ve seen updates like the ability to remove your last seen status, which tells your contacts and non-contacts the last time you were online.
WhatsApp also provided an update that lets you hide your profile picture from non-contacts or everyone. WhatsApp users also have the ability to turn off read receipts, which indicates if a message has been opened and read or not.
But so far, this WhatsApp online tracker hasn’t changed. It’s a feature most users dislike because it allows people to stalk you just to know whether you are online or not.
Just like Instagram, WhatsApp will now grant users access to turn off their online status. This way, your contacts and non-contacts won’t be able to know when you open the app or when you are using it either.
Can we hide online in WhatsApp?
According to WABetaInfo, WhatsApp users will be able to turn off their online status. The source, which is very reliable when it comes to WhatsApp updates, revealed this upcoming update with screenshots to back it up.
The source added that the technology giant will make it easy for users to hide their online status on WhatsApp. From the screenshot shown from an iPhone, the user goes to “Settings” and has navigated and clicked on “Privacy.”
Then, the screen has the title “Last seen and online.” The options found under “Who can see my last seen” include “Everyone,” “My contacts,” “My contacts except..,” and “Nobody.”
The options found under “Who can see when I’m online” include “Everyone” and “Same as last seen.” Selecting the first option for the WhatsApp online status means that anybody, even people not on your contact list can see when you are online.
But selecting the second option, which is “same as last seen”, gives you different options. This means that if your last seen is set to “Everyone”, your WhatsApp online will be seen by everybody, including non-contacts.
1. If your last seen is set to “My contacts”, it means that your WhatsApp online will only be visible to your contacts alone, so non-contacts won’t be able to see it.
2. If your last seen is set to “My contacts except..”, that means that you can pick out certain people you won’t want to know when you are online. This means that everyone on your contact list will be able to see when you are online except for these selected people.
3. If your last seen is set to “Nobody”, this means that no one will be able to see when you’re online whether they are on your contact list or not.
So it’s up to a user to decide which one suits them and select it.
Changing “Online” Status on the Desktop PC Version of WhatsApp
WABetaInfo reports that even if the screenshots were on an iPhone, the online status will still be available on both the android and desktop versions of WhatsApp. This means all WhatsApp users will definitely get this update.
It is important to note that the WhatsApp online update hasn’t been officially announced by WhatsApp and is probably still in development. No one can tell when it will be rolled out so we have to wait and watch WhatsApp do its thing.
The WhatsApp online status update has been a long-awaited feature that many users have been looking forward to, and we are glad that it could finally be coming to our devices.