WHATSAPP is making it harder to pass on messages that might contain harmful or misleading information.
In an upcoming update, the US chat app is expected to set new limits on how many times you can forward a text.
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The change was spotted by WABetaInfo, a website that scours the code of early versions of WhatsApp before they’re released.
In a recent beta for the Android version of the app, WhatsApp blocked users from forwarding a message to more than one group chat.
If you want to forward the text to a second or third chat, you’ll need to select it and forward it again, WABetaInfo said.
“When a message is marked as forwarded, it’s no longer possible to forward it to more than one group chat at a time,” the site said.
It added that the new limit is currently rolling out to beta testers and will be enabled for everyone in the next few days.
It’s not clear why WhatsApp is introducing the new restrictions.
Previously, the company has limited forwarding on its app as a way of curbing the otherwise unchecked spread of dangerous misinformation.
As WhatsApp tests new tools and settings, it rolls them out to a small group of people as part of “beta” tests.
Some websites, such as WABetaInfo, are members of WhatsApp’s fabled beta programme, and promptly share whatever they find.
It means fans can get wind of upcoming WhatsApp features long before they’re released to the average user.
Keep in mind that a feature appearing in beta does not necessarily mean that it’ll make it to general release.
However, early versions of the app are generally a good barometer for what users can expect to land on the app in the coming months.
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It’s not the first time that WhatsApp has cracked down on forwarded content in a bid to stamp out hoaxes.
In March 2019, the chat app added a label that automatically indicates if a message has been forwarded.
A year later, a limit to the number of times a message could be forwarded was introduced to stem a tidal wave of fake news spread on the app at the outbreak of the Covid-19 pandemic
Thousands of users were reading widely-debunked claims about the cause of the deadly virus and forwarding them on to their contacts.
How to get WhatsApp beta
To download WhatsApp beta for your smartphone you need to go to Google Play on your Android and search for WhatsApp.
Scroll down the page until you see “Become a Beta Tester”.
Tap the “I’m In” button and then click “Join” to confirm.
Now all you have to do is wait for the update to the beta version of the app.
Joining the WhatsApp beta on iPhone is more difficult, and has limited capacity.
Follow Apple’s guide here.
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This post first appeared on Thesun.co.uk
