WhatsApp Brings New Security Feature to Android Users – Fingerprint Authentication

If you have a smartphone, it means that you already use and know WhatsApp, one of the most popular messaging applications used mostly by the population from developing countries. Due to the fact that more and more people are using WhatsApp, the company behind it decided that they should make it more secure as well, offering protection to users that exchange texts and media. In the future, WhatsApp will receive fingerprint authentification so that security will be easier to achieve. This clue was found by WABetaInfo in the latest beta with version 2.19.3.

The same source suggests that sometime in the future you will be provided the possibility to use your fingerprint for authentification under WhatsApp’s Privacy section from settings. In case the fingerprint is not your style, you will also be able to use other credentials such as a password or a PIN. All devices running on Android Marshmallow or newer will support the fingerprint sign-in. Unfortunately for older devices, only manual authentification will be available. For iOS users, the Touch ID and Face ID authentication will be introduced. What is still unknown is the release date of the new feature.

According to WABetaInfo, the WhatsApp 2.19.1 will also introduce an audio picker with a different design which supports previewing tracks instead of sending them directly to the contacts. Unfortunately, this is another feature which’s release date we do not know.

The features mentioned above are still in an alpha stage, so this is why the launch date remains unknown, so the best would be not to expect them any time soon. However, make sure that you keep WhatsApp on the automatically updating setting so in case a new update comes you will be part of the firsts who get it before anyone else.