WhatsApp update will let users add contacts from any linked device
You can soon also save contacts without needing access to your primary phone and restore them easily to any new device.
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Photo: Whatsapp.
WhatsApp has just said that it will be making it easier to add and manage contacts within the app.
The first change is allowing you to save your contacts from any linked device, meaning that you no longer need to use you phone to enter contact details. You can use your keyboard within WhatsApp Web and Windows.
You will also be able to save a contact exclusively to WhatsApp. This can be handy if you share your smartphone with others, or if you want to separate personal and work WhatsApp accounts on a single device. Handily, these contacts are fully restorable if you ever lose or change your smartphone.
WhatsApp has designed a new encrypted storage system called Identity Proof Linked Storage (IPLS) to enable this secure contact saving. When users save a contact, the system generates an encryption key on the client device. The retrieval is based on the client authenticating its primary device identity.
The final update to contacts is the ability to save contacts by usernames. While WhatsApp says that this ‘will add an extra degree of privacy” as you won’t have to save someone’s information via a phone number. You can also share a username with someone without sharing contact details (something Telegram already has).
Unfortunately, there is no timeframe for these to be rolled out other than “soon”.
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