WhatsApp could remove time limit for ‘Delete for Everyone’ in upcoming build

WhatsApp could update its ‘Delete for Everyone’ feature to work indefinitely, according to a feature leaker. Here’s how the feature might work in an upcoming build.

At the moment, WhatsApp allows users to delete messages for all recipients in a conversation for 4096 seconds (or 68 minutes and 16 seconds) after the message is sent. (REUTERS)

Four years after it first launched a ‘Delete for Everyone' feature that would allow users to retract messages from both sides of a chat while deleting a message, WhatsApp is reportedly working on removing the time limit, allowing users to delete messages longer than previously allowed on the service.

In a screenshot shared by popular feature leaker WABetaInfo, the familiar WhatsApp for Android interface is visible, along with the dialog that asks a user to choose whether they want to delete the message for only themselves or everyone in a chat. The message, however, is three months old and the chat behind shows a date of August 23. This is far beyond the current time limit imposed by WhatsApp when using the ‘Delete for Everyone' feature.

WABetaInfo shared an image of the Delete for Everyone feature working on a three-month-old message.  (WABetaInfo)

WABetaInfo shared an image of the Delete for Everyone feature working on a three-month-old message.  (WABetaInfo)

At the moment, WhatsApp allows users to delete messages for all recipients in a conversation for 4096 seconds (or 68 minutes and 16 seconds) after the message is sent. This timer was increased after the feature was released in 2017 with the ability to delete messages within 8 minutes after they were sent. However, the leak suggests that the timer could be removed altogether in the future update, according to the feature leaker.

If WhatsApp removes the time limit for the ‘Delete for Everyone' feature, it will not be the first service to do so. Telegram and Instagram both allow users to delete older messages from the app, without any time limit. “What we can confirm is that you can delete a message for everyone without time limits at the current state of development,” WABetaInfo notes. However, as WABetaInfo notes, that the feature could receive further changes along the line, and users should wait for confirmation if and when the feature does appear in a future build of WhatsApp.