Temporary messages are a privacy-focused WhatsApp feature. When activated by the user, they can set messages to disappear 24 hours, 7 days, or 90 days after being sent. An option for messages so that they “do not end up in the wrong hands”, according to the instant messaging platform.
However, sometimes someone wants to keep an occasional voice memo or some important information. For this reason, WhatsApp has deployed the ‘Keep in chat’ function for all users globally, with which users can store temporary messages that they do not want to lose.
“We believe that when you send a message, you should choose whether others in the chat can keep it for later,” the company argued on its official blog.
But everything will depend on the person who has activated the temporary messages: “For this to work, we will notify you when someone saves a message you sent, and you can cancel the decision. If you decide that no one can save your message, this decision will be final, so no one else will be able to keep it, and the message will be deleted when the timer expires. In this way, the platform follows, the user has the last word “as to how the messages you send are protected.”
WhatsApp will display a bookmark icon next to these messages, which will be stored in the ‘Keeping Messages’ folder. This change won’t roll out right away, but will roll out to phones around the world over the next few weeks.
In an individual chat, any of the users can turn temporary messages on or off. As detailed by the platform in its help service, when this option is activated, messages are determined to disappear 24 hours, 7 days, or 90 days after being sent, unless they are kept.
The most recent selection applies only to new chat messages. Therefore, it does not affect messages sent or received before. In addition, you can choose to activate the temporary messages feature in all chats or only in specific conversations.
