WhatsApp, the popular messaging app, introduced a new feature a few weeks ago that allows you to lock access to your most sensitive conversations. If you use WhatsApp to chat with your loved ones and wish to add an extra layer of security to certain conversations, you’re in luck. WhatsApp’s Chat Lock feature is a valuable tool to safeguard your private exchanges, especially in situations where your smartphone might end up in the hands of others. This feature enables you to individually lock specific conversations, ensuring that they can only be accessed after your authentication, whether it’s through a password, facial recognition, or fingerprint scanning. Here’s a step-by-step guide on how to lock access to your WhatsApp conversations on both iPhone and Android devices.
- Open the Conversation to Lock: Launch WhatsApp and navigate to the conversation you wish to protect. It’s important to note that conversation locking can only be applied individually to each of your WhatsApp conversations.
- Access Contact Information: To access advanced conversation options, tap on the name of the contact at the top of your screen. This will take you to the Contact Info page.
- Lock the Conversation: Scroll through the available options and locate the “Chat Lock” menu. Enable the option “Lock this chat with Face ID” (for iPhone users) or “Lock this chat with a fingerprint” (or other available options based on your Android device’s authentication methods).
- Access Locked Conversations: Once you’ve successfully locked a conversation, it will no longer appear in the Chats tab like your other conversations. Instead, locked conversations will be stored in a dedicated folder called “Locked Discussions,” which you can access at the very top of the Discussions tab.
Please note that while this feature adds a layer of security to your WhatsApp conversations on your smartphone, it does not extend to other devices linked to your WhatsApp account. For instance, if you use WhatsApp on your PC, the locked conversations will remain accessible. WhatsApp does not currently offer an option to lock access to these conversations on desktop devices. Additionally, if you use WhatsApp on multiple smartphones simultaneously, you will need to repeat the process on each device if you want to lock access to the same conversations.
With WhatsApp’s Chat Lock feature, you can enjoy enhanced privacy and security for your most sensitive conversations, ensuring that only you can access their content.
