WhatsApp is rolling out a new contact storing update where users can privately add and manage contacts through the app, rather than relying on a mobile device.
Contacts have previously been stored on a mobile device and then added to the instant messaging service by typing in the mobile number or scanning a QR code.
If the original mobile phone became lost, the WhatsApp contacts would be gone with it.
Now though, users can add and manage contacts directly from WhatsApp Web and Windows. A new choice to save a contact exclusively to WhatsApp has also been introduced.
“These WhatsApp contacts are ideal for when you are sharing your phone with others or if you want to separate personal and business contacts when managing more than one WhatsApp account on your phone,” said the team in a blog post on Tuesday (October 22).
Any contacts stored on the platform can be restored if users lose their phones or change devices.
“These updates will also make it possible to eventually manage and save contacts by usernames.
“Usernames on WhatsApp will add an extra degree of privacy so that you don’t need to share your phone number when messaging someone. Today’s just one crucial step to making that reality possible and we’ll have more to share when it’s ready.”
WhatsApp has created an encrypted storage system for contact storing feature
For people with both a work and personal account on the same phone, these contact lists can now be customized for each separate account.
The company writes that the new features have been built with security in mind which has led them to create an encrypted storage system called ‘Identity Proof Linked Storage’ (IPLS).
The contact names are stored encrypted within WhatsApp, with additional robust protections having been built by using ILPS to “deter access to contacts to anyone except the user.”
The company has partnered with Cloudflare to provide independent third-party auditing and to “ensure the safety and security of this system.”
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