Image source: “whatsapp” by clasesdeperiodismo is licensed under CC BY-SA 2.0.
San Francisco: Meta-owned WhatsApp is rolling out a new option on Android and iOS to make it harder for hackers to infer users’ location by protecting their IP address in calls.
With this new ‘protect IP address in calls’ feature, users will get to add an extra layer of security to their calls by protecting their IP address and location from malicious actors, reports WABetaInfo.
The new feature is available in a new section called “Advanced”, placed within the privacy settings screen, which contains the new option, making it harder for anyone in the call to infer users’ location by securely relaying through WhatsApp servers.
However, the privacy call relay feature might have a minor impact on call quality due to the encryption and routing operations of users’ connection during a conversation through WhatsApp servers, the report noted.
Moreover, the report stated that the new feature will be highly beneficial against any potential attempts to track user’s location and IP address, especially when they are on a WhatsApp call with unknown contacts, as it makes it much harder for anyone to track private information.
The new privacy feature to protect the IP address in calls is available to some beta testers who install the latest version of WhatsApp beta for Android and iOS and it will be rolling out to more users over the coming days, the report added.
Meanwhile, WhatsApp is rolling out a new revamped interface for the Android application to a limited number of beta testers. The updated interface features new icons to offer users a more modern experience by improving the overall visual appeal of the app.
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