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WhatsApp plans new feature with username instead of mobile number

WhatsApp is apparently planning an exciting innovation for its community. The source code of the latest update reveals that it will be possible to create accounts with just names instead of phone numbers in the future. Should the messenger from Meta actually put this into practice, things could change in terms of data protection.

Beta update of WhatsApp apparently with innovation

To call WhatsApp a dusty application would not be justified at all. Thus, the market leader in the field of messenger services scores at regular intervals with updates that bring new features. Just a few days ago, the subsidiary of tech company Meta announced that it would be possible to edit already sent messages in chats in the future. In the beta update 2.23.11.15 for AndroidOS, another innovation can now be read out. At least, the experts from WABetaInfo came across the “Usernames” function while combing through the source code. If the insider info turns out to be true, we could be in for a fundamental change in Messenger here. After all, the feature is supposed to make it possible that your account is no longer primarily tied to a phone number, but to a username.

This could not only greatly expand the user’s individual customization options. Adding new contacts in particular should make the whole thing easier. After all, it would no longer be necessary to have a phone number on hand to add someone new to the contact list. Instead, a user name would suffice. Thus, WhatsApp users would not always have to give out their personal cell phone number in order to chat via the widespread messenger. This should please friends of solid data protection in particular. Since more and more service providers are also relying on the simple and fast use of WhatsApp, this should be particularly interesting for them.

Peer-to-peer encryption remains

Despite the new feature, the basic privacy structure of WhatsApp is not expected to change. For users, this is good news. After all, the company relies on secure peer-to-peer encryption. How far-reaching data protection actually is, however, is always in the eye of the beholder. Just recently, for example, the German Federal Cartel Office publicly presented the results of a comprehensive investigation of well-known messengers, including WhatsApp. It came out that they all offer quite weak data protection. However, the new feature, which the messenger from Meta apparently wants to launch, could specifically improve the situation. We are curious to see whether the speculations prove true.

Simon Lüthje

I am co-founder of this blog and am very interested in everything that has to do with technology, but I also like to play games. I was born in Hamburg, but now I live in Bad Segeberg.

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WhatsApp is apparently planning an exciting innovation for its community. The source code of the latest update reveals that it will be possible to create accounts with just names instead of phone numbers in the future. Should the messenger from Meta actually put this into practice, things could change in terms of data protection. Beta … (Weiterlesen...)

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