Worldwide instant messaging app, Whatsapp has introduced new features as part of security measures to make the app safer and easier for users.

The green app is one of the most used social media used for both personal use and business with approximately two billion downloads.

The founder of Meta, Mark Zuckerberg said, “we’ll keep building new ways to protect your messages and keep them as private and secure as face-to-face conversations.”

The new privacy features added to the latest update include exit group chats without notifying everyone; the power to choose who can see when you’re online for the number of contacts you want; and preventing screenshots from pictures and videos when it is put on view once.

According to Meta, the new features translate to more privacy, more protection and more control by users.

“We believe messaging and calling should always be as private and secure as having face-to-face conversations. Kind of like if two people were talking and no one else was around.

“WhatsApp protects the personal calls and messages of users with default end-to-end encryption, so no one but the intended recipient can hear or see them. But that is just one important part of protecting your privacy,” a statement on the Whatsapp blog partly reads.

“Over the years, we’ve added new layers of privacy protections to give you multiple ways to secure your messages, including disappearing messages that self-destruct, end-to-end encrypted backups when you want to save your chat history, 2-step verification for added security, and the ability to block and report unwanted chats.

“Today, we’re excited to bring several new privacy features that provide even more layers of protection and give you more control over your messages. This is all part of how we work to keep your conversations secure on WhatsApp,” it added.

Leave Groups Silently:

“We love our group chats but some are not forever. We’re making it possible to exit a group privately without making it a big deal to everyone. Now, instead of notifying the full group when you are leaving, only the admins will be notified. This feature will start to roll out to all users this month.”

Choose Who Can See When You’re Online:

“Seeing when friends or family are online helps us feel connected to one another, but we’ve all had times when we wanted to check our WhatsApp privately.

For the moments you want to keep your online presence private, we’re introducing the ability to select who can and can’t see when you’re online. This will start rolling out to all users this month.”