A few months back, WhatsApp introduced a chat lock feature that allowed users to secure their chat with a biometric lock. The chats were also hidden from the main chats list and required a two-swipe process to access them. WhatsApp is now launching a new feature to make accessing locked chats easier.
The secret code feature is currently being rolled out to the beta users of WhatsApp. It is accessible to a limited set of users, predominantly among Android users.
Secret Codes Will Make It Easier To Search For Locked Chat in WhatsApp
As of now, if you lock any chat in WhatsApp, the chat will be hidden from the main chat list. The user has to go to the top of the list of chats and swipe down to reveal the locked chat options. Here, the user needs to unlock the chat with their biometric lock, before they can access the secured chats.
For privacy reasons, locked chats do not show up in the search bar of WhatsApp. Hence, if you have too many locked chats, it becomes difficult to search for a particular locked chat. WhatsApp is addressing this problem with the new secret codes feature.
With the latest update, users will get an option to set a secret code while locking any chat on WhatsApp. This secret code can be entered in the search bar of WhatsApp, which will reveal the name of the locked chat. It will still ask you to unlock the chat with your biometric authentication.
Users can set a word, or even use an emoji as a secret code. WhatsApp also prompts you to keep the secret code memorable. Chats having a secret code can still be accessed by using the regular two-swipe method from the top of the chat list.
The secret code feature is currently being tested in the latest beta version of WhatsApp. The exact version number is 2.13.21.9 as reported by WABetaInfo. The feature was originally spotted in the previous beta version and is reported to be accessible by a small set of users with the latest update.
However, this update still does not resolve one of the most asked features by WhatsApp users. The chat lock feature is currently not supported on companion devices and is only available on the primary device of the user.
As per WABetaInfo, WhatsApp is expected to launch the chat lock feature on companion devices very soon. The feature is currently under development, as reported by the blog.
Although the chat lock feature is expected to launch soon on linked devices, it is still not clear whether it will be available on WhatsApp Web or not. The web version of WhatsApp is deprived of many such advanced features and is generally the last in the list to get a new update.
