Here's everything you need to know about WhatsApp's View Once feature

Once the recipient views the media, the media will no longer be visible in that chat and the message will appear as “opened” to avoid any confusion about what was happening in the chat at the time. Just like all other messages you send on WhatsApp, View Once media is protected by end-to-end encryption.

WhatsApp is rolling out a new 'View Once' feature that lets you send photos and videos that disappear from your chat after the recipient has opened them once. The new feature is rolling out to all WhatsApp users this week.

Once the recipient views the media, the media will no longer be visible in that chat and the message will appear as “opened” to avoid any confusion about what was happening in the chat at the time. Just like all other messages you send on WhatsApp, View Once media is protected by end-to-end encryption.

"While taking photos or videos on our phones has become such a big part of our lives, not everything we share needs to become a permanent digital record. That's why today we're rolling out new View Once photos and videos that disappear from the chat after they've been opened, giving users even more control over their privacy," the company said on Tuesday.

Here are some of the key points that you need to know about WhatsApp's View Once feature:

• You must select view once media each time you want to send a view once photo or video.
• View Once media will not be saved to the recipient's Photos or Gallery and they can't forward, save, star, or share them
• If you don't open the View Once photo or video within 14 days of it being sent, the media will expire from the chat.
• If a recipient chooses to report view once media, the media will be provided to WhatsApp.

It is worth mentioning that a recipient can still take a screenshot or screen recording of the media before it disappears. Therefore, WhatsApp recommends users to only send photos or videos with view once media enabled to trusted individuals.

How to send 'View Once' media on WhatsApp?

To send view once photos and videos on the instant messaging platform, follow these steps:

• Tap a chat - individual or group
• Tap the attachment icon to select an existing photo or video from your phone or use the camera button to take a new photo or video
• Tap 1
• Tap Send