Additionally, the messaging app owned by Meta is currently developing a fact-checking chatbot.

WhatsApp has said that its beta version now has a feature that protects users’ profile images. Before, WhatsApp users could keep their profile photos private from outsiders, but there was no way to stop other users from snapping screenshots of their photos. Recent reports indicate that this is going to change shortly, however.

According to a report from WABetaInfo, the messaging giant has gone one step further and stopped users from taking screenshots within the app, in addition to removing the ability to store or download profile photographs.

The new feature, which is now accessible in the WhatsApp beta app for Android users, prevents users from taking screenshots of profile pictures by displaying a warning message on a black screen that reads, “Can’t take a screenshot due to app restrictions.” The goal of this proactive strategy is to prevent unauthorized users from taking and maybe publishing profile images without permission.

WhatsApp appears to be trying to reduce the possibility of harassment and impersonation by limiting the ability to snap screenshots of profile images. It appears that the screenshot block function, which is presently only accessible to a small number of beta testers, will be made available to all users in the upcoming weeks.

Similar functionalities are also available on other photo-sharing websites like Snapchat and payment apps like Paytm and Google Pay. These features prevent users from taking screenshots in particular situations, particularly when private or sensitive data is at risk.

Even while this update provides a further level of security, it’s important to remember that no security measure is 100% reliable. Even if screenshot capabilities has been restricted, people can still experiment with other approaches, such taking profile photographs with a secondary device.

In an effort to address the problems caused by deepfakes and artificial intelligence (AI) misinformation, the messaging app owned by Meta is also actively developing a fact-checking chatbot.