WhatsApp

You know things have gone from bad to worse when you own ranks are either falling on their swords or turning against you. That’s the plight that Facebook is now facing after days of non-stop criticism over its handling of user data. Facebook is no stranger to controversy and calls to boycott its service. But the latest call to action comes from the strangest and probably most ironic person: Brian Acton, who co-founded WhatsApp which Facebook bought to the tune of $19 billion.

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Vanishing conversations are all the rage these days, and it's one feature that WhatsApp notably lacks. Though everything that passes through WhatsApp is encrypted, that doesn't really help when you say something you think better of upon further reflection. Enter WhatsApp's "delete for everyone" feature, which does precisely what the name says - it allows you to delete your messages after you send them, preventing your conversation partners from seeing them.

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BlackBerry is going after Facebook, as well as its Instagram and WhatsApp companies, for alleged patent infringement. The company filed a lawsuit against the social media platforms today, accusing them of developing mobile apps that infringe on BlackBerry's "mobile messaging intellectual property." A spokesperson for BlackBerry claims the company has spent "several years" in talks with Facebook over the alleged IP infringement, apparently without any progress in the matter.

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Apple's CarPlay has added support for WhatsApp, allowing for voice control of the popular instant messaging service while driving. The latest update to WhatsApp quietly added CarPlay compatibility this week, making the messaging app one of a short list of third-party applications and services that Apple has allowed into its walled garden of features deemed safe enough for the road.

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Though WhatsApp was first envisioned as a communication app for regular people, its impressive growth over the years has driven businesses to sign up for it too. Having a social media presence is important for a lot of businesses these days, so WhatsApp has decided to facilitate them better by launching an app made specifically for them. Today a new app called WhatsApp Business has launched on Android, and while it's mostly the same WhatsApp we're already familiar with, it comes with a handful of enhancements for business users.

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WhatsApp may be testing a new feature that aims to prevent -- or at least decrease -- the sharing of spam and other unwanted content between users. Though WhatsApp isn't talking about the apparent test, some users report seeing a warning when they're about to share spammy content. The alert warns the user that the content has been forwarded many times before, basically highlighting its potential chain-letter nature.

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Instagram is experimenting with a new feature that allows its customers to cross-post Instagram Stories directly to WhatsApp, a feature that builds upon the Facebook cross-posting it officially launched in late 2017. Only some Instagram users are spotting this feature at this time, and they all appear to be in Brazil. When the feature may roll out more extensively is unclear.

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WhatsApp has called time on BlackBerry 10 and Windows Phone 8.0, confirming that it will cease supporting the smartphone platforms at the end of the year as it focuses its development attentions elsewhere. The decision won't mean instant death for the WhatsApp app on those platforms, but it does mean the end is in sight.

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WhatsApp users are spotting a new feature that hasn't officially been announced yet, but that has appeared on the service's FAQ page. The feature has been a popular request and gives users a way to recall -- that is, to delete -- a message they sent (hopefully) before the other person sees it. This is a life-saver if you accidentally send the wrong message or, in a moment of inebriation, say something dumb.

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WhatsApp has pushed out a new feature that enables its users to share their location in real time, making it possible for family and friends to see where you're at and, depending on circumstances, whether you're safe. The feature could come in handy during times when you're venturing out into the unknown alone, or when you're meeting someone for the first time, among other things.

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WhatsApp, despite its claims to privacy and end-to-end encryption, has never really recovered from the scandals that plagued it, especially after its acquisition by Facebook. This recently discovered vulnerability doesn't help it either, especially when it can, amusingly or not, be used to establish infidelity. All that from an exploit that allows others to see your online and last seen status, which can eventually be correlated to your sleeping patterns and who you might be chatting with.

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It would appear that WhatsApp has caused China enough trouble that the government has blocked the app's usage entirely. This comes after weeks of smaller blocks within the app, including voice chats, the sending of photographs and other files, and video chats. Now Nadim Kobeissi, an applied cryptographer at Symbolic Software, suggests that China's blocked all communication with WhatsApp entirely, starting this week.

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