WhatsApp is testing a new feature that enables users to send read-once disappearing messages, allowing recipients to view the text only once before it disappears. This development comes as WhatsApp adds to its existing suite of disappearing media options, which already includes photos, videos, and voice messages, according to WABetaInfo.
The feature is being tested in the latest iOS beta, version 26.24.10.16, on TestFlight, with a pre-release version for Android also evaluating the function. Users can select a “Send as view once” option after composing their messages.
Once the view-once message is sent, recipients can open and read it only once. They will not have the ability to copy, forward, or share the message. Additionally, WhatsApp will block any attempts to take screenshots or record the screen to maintain user privacy.
Competitors like Messenger, Instagram, Snapchat, and Telegram already offer similar disappearing message options. Prior to this update, WhatsApp users often resorted to screenshotting a text and sending it as a disappearing image, circumventing the previous limitations.
No specific timeline for a wider rollout of this feature has been announced, but its status in TestFlight suggests that it may be available soon.
