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In WhatsApp, photos can be sent for one-time viewing. The recipient cannot save them. In which cases this makes sense and how to use the function, you will find out in this practical tip.
Prepare WhatsApp photo for one-time viewing
Sending pictures with your mobile phone can be terribly practical. However, you can never really know what the recipient will do with them. In order for the sender to retain a certain degree of control, WhattsApp has introduced the “View Once” function. However, security risks remain.
- Call up a picture from their gallery as usual or take a new photo by tapping the paperclip icon in the message bar. Use the icon to the right to access your camera directly. You can now edit the picture before sending it.
- In the bottom right-hand corner of the caption line, there is a small one in a circle. If you tap on it, the circle fills with green. The message “Photo set for one-time viewing” appears in the middle of the screen.
- After you have finished editing, send the picture by clicking on the arrow symbol at the bottom right. To check, the name of the recipient is displayed again underneath. As soon as the photo is opened, you will receive a notification in the chat.
Send pictures securely
With self-deleting photos, the sender retains a degree of control over their data. However, there remains a residual risk. So despite the new feature, caution is still advised.
- The recipient has 14 days to view the photo before the message becomes invalid. So you decide how often the photo appears, but not when and where. Who gets to see it is ultimately out of your hands.
- Normally, the picture is deleted from the recipient’s memory. To keep the photo anyway, he could simply take a screenshot of the screen while it is being displayed.
- Never send sensitive content to contacts you don’t trust. If it is absolutely necessary, you can also crop the photo or black out certain areas.
