WhatsApp Gets Another Great Feature And This One Is Long Overdue
WhatsApp is getting a really important new feature that could save a lot of irritation – Photo credit: ASSOCIATED PRESS
WhatsApp has one especially frustrating feature – the ability for anyone to add you to a group, even if you don’t want to be in it. This has fairly serious implications for a number of reasons I’ll get to, but for now the good news is this is changing.
WhatsApp leak and feature site WABetaInfo has learned that the popular messaging app will add a way for users to control who can and can’t add them to groups. A setting, which will appear in the account > privacy menu.
Within that menu you’ll be able to allow invites from everyone (the current method), contacts only or nobody. The settings are pretty self-explanatory, particularly the first two. However the third is actually the best of the lot. It allows you to block all group invites but to receive an invitation from the group admin. That means you’ll be able to ignore bothersome requests.
These invites will be active for 72 hours, after which they will be removed. This system also applies if you have your invites set to “contacts only” but someone outside your contact list tries to add you.
Anyone who has been added to a group against their will and felt, for whatever reason, that they can’t leave it again, will be thrilled by this.
And there are some safety implications for the new group settings too. Imagine that your kids have a WhatsApp account and that they’re experiencing bullying. Under the current system the people harassing them would be able to invite them to groups as a method of harassment.
