We first wrote about this feature back in June when it entered beta, but it’s now just a standard part of the app.
We’ll explain in a few simple steps how to use the View Once feature… but also how to get around it.
How to screenshot photos on WhatsApp without the sender knowing
In the pop-up that appears when you first use View Once, you are told that it is there to improve privacy, but warned that the recipient can still take a screenshot or recording.
Don’t hit Send just yet…
The first time you do so you’ll get a pop-up informing you that the “Photo set to view once” so will disappear when the recipient has opened and viewed it once. Tapping it will also see it turn from white to green so you know it’s switched on.
After the media has been viewed the message will change from ‘Photo’ or ‘Video’ to ‘Opened’ and the 1 will disappear from the icon. Your recipient will see the same message on their phone, and will no longer be able to view that media.
What WhatsApp doesn’t tell you is that unlike other social apps (for example Snapchat and Instagram), it will not notify you if someone does exactly that. This means your photo or video that you thought would self-destruct might actually still be floating around somewhere without your knowledge.
According to WABetaInfo, WhatsApp says this is for your own good. Huh?
Because it is so easy to get around mechanisms that prevent you taking a screenshot without the sender knowing, WhatsApp says it doesn’t want to lull users into a false sense of security by allowing them to incorrectly assume that a screenshot cannot be taken without their knowledge.
Read next:
How to use WhatsApp’s disappearing messages feature How to delete a WhatsApp message before it is read
Marie is Editorial Director at Foundry. A Journalism graduate from the London College of Printing, she’s worked in tech media for more than 17 years, managing our EMEA and LatAm editorial teams and leading on content strategy through Foundry’s transition from print, to digital, to online - and beyond.
