By Ashley Young-
Facebook Messenger will soon notify its users when their chat has been screenshotted, Mark Zuckerberg has announced.
Secret screenshots used to capture entertaining moments in group chats before being shared online can be both useful and detrimental to the interest of those whose comments are being saved. Without their permission, it can upset many, though it can be useful to others.
Late last week, founder of facebook, Mark Zuckerberg(pictured), shared a screenshot of a conversation with his wife, Priscilla Chan. ‘New update for end-to-end encrypted Messenger chats so you get a notification if someone screenshots a disappearing message. We’re also adding GIFs, stickers, and reactions to encrypted chats too,’ he wrote.
The photo shows a notification that reads, ‘Priscilla turned on disappearing messages. All new messages will be removed 12 hours after you have seen them,’ as well as a dad joke.
“We’re also adding GIFs, stickers, and reactions to encrypted chats too,” he added.
While WhatsApp allows its users to send messages that automatically delete after seven days, Facebook’s ‘Vanish Mode’ deletes messages as soon as users leave the chat, and its ‘secret conversations’ function allows people to set a specific timer on when the messages will disappear.
‘People expect their messaging apps to be secure and private, and with these new features, we’re giving them more control over how private they want their calls and chats to be,’ the platform earlier wrote.
‘People don’t always want or need their messages to stick around and the timer controls let someone decide when their messages expire in the chat. We’ve updated this setting to provide more options for people in the chat to choose the amount of time before all new messages disappear, from as few as 5 seconds to as long as 24 hours.’
The move has been praised by some users, while others have grown tired of his ‘metaverse’ ramblings. ‘I have to say, what you’ve accomplished IS super cool. However… I wish the same energy was put into making REAL LIFE better for humanity instead of the virtual one. Nothing will ever be better than human to human connection and interaction,’ one user wrote.