WhatsApp has begun rolling out the 'View Once' feature to users in Beta for Android. Mark Zuckerberg and Will Cathcart had previously hinted at the feature being implemented soon on the chat platform in an interview with WABetainfo.
The Facebook owned service is now rolling out the feature as part of its latest WhatsApp Beta on Android version 2.21.14.3. If you have the latest beta and can't see the feature, it will eventually be given to you in an update. People on iOS need to wait a while before the feature is rolled out for them.
Users who have this feature can use it by tapping the small 'View Once' button next to your message previews. Once that is enabled and you share the message with a recipient, they only have one chance to read or view the message before it gets deleted automatically. The sender will also receive notifications that gives the status of the message and whether it has been delivered, opened or seen.
One flaw in the system is that the recipient can still take a screenshot of the message before it fades away and the feature currently does not support screenshot detection so there is no way for the sender to know if the recipient has done so. This feature also works with groups and the sender can find out who viewed the message by tapping on Message Info.
'View Once' also works for recipients who do not have access to the feature yet. They can view the disappearing messages but cannot send one of their own until they update.
