WhatsApp gains listen-once voice messages

The instant messaging platform WhatsApp has announced a new feature that could well help keep voice messages more private after they have been sent. Normally, sending a voice message to someone means that the message is there forever and that the recipient can listen to it whenever they want to. However, a new change allows people to now send the same voice messages but have them automatically disappear immediately after they have been listened to.

Such listen-once voice messages can be used for sending messages that are only valid for a short period of time. WhatsApp's announcement blog post includes the example of reading out your credit card details to a friend, although we're not sure that's something you should be doing all that much anyway. Another example is when planning a surprise, too.

Voice messages of the listen-once variety are clearly marked as such so those who receive them will immediately know what the situation is before they listen to that message. The new voice messages work in much the same way as the existing view once photos and videos that are already supported by WhatsApp.

This latest addition is another example of how WhatsApp continues to add new features to ensure as much privacy and control over the messages you send as possible. The company says that the new voice message feature is now rolling out globally so if you haven't yet seen the new feature appear on your own account it's only a matter of time until that changes - keep your eyes peeled and hopefully the new feature will be with you sooner rather than later.