WhatsApp rolls out 'View Once' photos, videos

• They will be clearly marked with a new “one-time” icon.
• After media has been viewed, message will appear as “opened”.
• Feature to roll out for everyone starting this week.

Taking photos and recording videos of almost every fun, important, and the random moment has become common in the contemporary world, but not every memory should leave a digital print.

To provide users with a chance to share the moment with others and not leave a digital footprint, WhatsApp has rolled out "View Once" photos and videos that disappear from the chat after they’ve been opened, giving users greater control over their privacy.

For example, you might send a "View Once" photo of some new clothes you’re trying on at a store, a quick reaction to a moment in time, or something sensitive like a Wi-Fi password.

"As with all the personal messages you send on WhatsApp, 'View Once' media is protected by end-to-end encryption so WhatsApp cannot see them," the messaging app's blog said.

They will also be clearly marked with a new “one-time” icon.

After the media has been viewed, the message will appear as “opened” to avoid any confusion about what was happening in the chat at the time.

We’re rolling out the feature to everyone starting this week and are looking forward to feedback on this new way to send private and disappearing media, the messaging app said.

More features:

• Media will not be saved to the recipient’s photos or gallery.
• Once you send a 'view once' photo or video, you won’t be able to view it again.
• You can’t forward, save, star, or share photos or videos that were sent or received with 'view once' media enabled.
• You can only see if a recipient has opened a view once photo or video if they have read receipts turned on.
• If you don’t open the photo or video within 14 days of it being sent, the media will expire from the chat.
• You must select view once media each time you want to send a view once photo or video.
• View once media can be restored from backup if the message is unopened at the time of backup. If the photo or video has already been opened, the media will not be included in the backup and can’t be restored.