After Telegram, Signal, and so many others, WhatsApp is about to take a major step in privacy management. The messaging app is currently testing a feature that will allow each user to choose a unique username. A significant change in the way contacts are added to the platform.
A WhatsApp username to keep your number private
Until now, all interaction on WhatsApp required a phone number. This could soon change. According to WABetaInfo, who spotted this new feature in a beta version of the app on TestFlight, WhatsApp is working on a pseudonym system. The idea is to allow users to communicate without revealing their phone number, by displaying only their username in discussions.
This name must follow several specific rules. For example, it cannot begin with "www.", to avoid any confusion with a URL. A nickname must also contain at least one letter (to avoid names made exclusively of numbers or symbols), and can only contain lowercase letters, numbers, periods, and underscores. If validated, a confetti-based animation will be displayed in the application.
Visible changes in chats
Concretely, once the nickname is activated, it will replace the number in groups and individual chats. And if a user decides to change it later, WhatsApp plans to automatically notify their contacts with a message in conversations, as is already the case when a photo or number is changed.
Other tools are also in the works, such as the ability to check if a name is available via the web version of WhatsApp. This should simplify the process, especially for users who manage their messaging on multiple devices. The feature is not yet accessible, even for beta testers. But elements spotted in the code suggest that it could soon see the light of day. WhatsApp seems to be accelerating the pace of new features lately, with the recent launch of its official iPad app.
Source: WABetaInfo
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