WhatsApp Introduced a new Chat Lock Feature

Enhance your WhatsApp Privacy with Chat Lock

On both smartphones and tablets, the chat lock function can be used to protect your most private conversations. You'll need to unlock them using device security methods like your phone's passcode, Face ID, or fingerprint identification to read or send messages in these chats. These password-protected chats are kept separately in a particular "Locked Chats" section.

Chats that have been locked keep privacy by having contacts and notification content obscured. Notifications just say "WhatsApp: 1 new message" without giving any other information. If you want to store media in your device's gallery, you'll need to temporarily disable the chat lock to protect the privacy of your media files.

It's important to know that chat lock can also be used to secure group and muted chats. Calls from contacts or groups in locked chat, however, won't be hidden and will continue to show as usual.

Only talks on that specific phone will be impacted by turning on the chat lock. The chats on any other devices you have linked to WhatsApp, such as a desktop computer, remain to be unlocked.

Your locked chats will remain locked when you restore to a new phone, even if you use WhatsApp's backup and restore feature. On the new device, locked chats will only be accessible after device verification has been set up using either Face ID or fingerprint identification.

Importantly, when you enable chat lock, the person you are talking with will not be aware that you've locked the chat.

If you want to lock an archived chat, you must unarchive it first to apply the lock.

Set up Chat Lock:

For any individual chat that you want to hide, you can turn on the chat lock in the chat's information settings. Before locking a chat, you are required to set up your device authentication methods, such as your phone's passcode, fingerprint scanner, or Face ID, if you haven't already.

Steps to lock your private chats:

1. Tap the details of the chat.

2. Choose "Chat lock."

3. Click "Lock this chat with Face ID" and then sign in with Face ID to confirm.

4. In the folder for Locked chats, select "View" to open the chat.

Follow the below-mentioned steps, to view your locked chats:

1. Open your WhatsApp Chats tab and swipe downward.

2. Click the folder for Locked chats.

3.  Verify your Face ID.

4. Enter the chat you want to read or write in.

Taking away Chat Lock:

You can disable the chat lock right from the chat's information settings if you want to do so.

This is how to turn off the chat lock:

1. Check the information in the chat.

2. Choose "Chat lock."

3. Set the lock off and verify with Face ID.