New WhatsApp ‘Screen Share’ Update Raises Privacy Concerns: What You Need to Know

WhatsApp users have been warned about a new update that introduces a ‘Screen Share’ feature, allowing contacts to view the content displayed on a smartphone screen. This recent change is part of WhatsApp’s ongoing efforts to enhance user experience.

Over the years, WhatsApp has implemented various updates, such as message reactions, custom stickers, chat encryption, and message editing. The ‘Screen Share’ feature aims to offer users a way to show content from websites, documents, or app features to their contacts during video calls.

The company unveiled this major update last week, clarifying that it is not as invasive as it may sound. The intention behind ‘Screen Share’ is to facilitate sharing live views of screens for purposes like work collaboration, family photo browsing, tech support, or demonstrating app functionalities.

Other video conferencing platforms, including Google Meet, Microsoft Teams, Zoom, and Apple’s FaceTime, have already incorporated similar screen-sharing capabilities for virtual meetings.

Meta, the parent company of WhatsApp, elaborated on the new feature in a press release, stating, “‘Screen sharing lets you share a live view of your screen during the call,’ whether it’s showing documents, browsing photos, planning activities, or assisting others with tech-related matters.”

Mark Zuckerberg, the founder of Meta, shared a picture on social media showing himself in a WhatsApp group call with someone utilizing the screen-sharing feature.

Once the ‘Screen Share’ feature is available in the coming weeks, users will notice a ‘Share icon’ within the app. Clicking on it will provide options to share a specific application or the entire screen. While this functionality is useful, users are advised to ensure that any private or sensitive information is hidden before initiating screen sharing.

Meta also highlighted that users can now conduct video calls in landscape mode on their phones for a more practical viewing experience.

Since introducing video calling in 2016, WhatsApp has continuously added new features to differentiate itself from other messaging platforms. In a recent update, the app enabled users to send short 60-second video messages directly within chats, enhancing the multimedia communication capabilities of the platform.