Big Update on WhatsApp: Soon, EU Residents will be Able to Send WhatsApp Messages to Other Apps

The tech giant Meta is consistently stepping up its apps with new updates and enhancements for its users. This time, it has been unveiled that WhatsApp will be getting a new software upgrade that allows WhatsApp users to send messages to other apps as well. Both WhatsApp and Messenger will eventually allow calls from third-party services, too but only in the EU. 

Meta asserts that it has “gone above and beyond the ‘basic’ features required for interoperable messaging” and will deliver several advanced messaging features, like reactions, direct replies, typing indicators, and reading receipts. It has also emphasized the preservation of maintaining security and privacy while simultaneously incorporating the expansion of functionality over time.

Users can choose which third-party apps they want to receive messages from, as well as new notifications informing them about available third-party messaging services. The freedom to separate third-party chats or integrate them into existing inboxes.

“As discussed in more detail in our previous blog, building third-party chats is technically challenging, and preserving privacy and security is a shared responsibility,” the post reads. “We have already come a long way, but there is a lot more to build.”

There exist certain obstacles that Meta must overcome, as other companies seeking to integrate with WhatsApp and Messenger will be required to utilize the identical signal protocol to safeguard the confidentiality of messages. Meta says that it will make the signal protocol available to partners upon request, in which third-party apps have to sign a copy of the agreement.