WhatsApp Web to Soon Get Username Search Feature Without Sharing Phone Number to Increase Privacy: Report

WhatsApp is reportedly working on a new feature that is expected to allow users to exercise more privacy when using WhatsApp Web. It may soon be unnecessary for users to share their phone numbers with others to connect with them on the instant messaging platform. The firm is reportedly developing a feature that will allow users to search for others on the platform by their usernames. The messaging client has previously been tipped to be working on the feature for Android users. Now, it is being reported that the feature may soon make its way to WhatsApp Web.

A report by WhatsApp feature tracker WABetaInfo states that WhatsApp is working on a feature for its Web client that is expected to allow a user to connect with others on the platform by looking up their usernames. Right now, people need to exchange phone numbers to connect on WhatsApp. The purported feature will help users connect with others without compelling them to share their numbers with people with whom they do not want to share them.

The username-based search on WhatsApp is expected to enhance privacy and encourage more secure communication without having to compromise any personal details. A screenshot of the work-in-progress feature shared in the report shows that once it is available, users can connect with anyone by searching for the name, phone number or username.

A similar feature is already available on Telegram, a competing cloud-based instant messaging platform. WhatsApp has previously been reported to be working on the same username-based search feature for its Android version. The new report claims that this feature is expected to be available for WhatsApp Web users as well in a future update.

This development comes a day after it was reported that WhatsApp is also working on a feature that will allow users to create usernames from the WhatsApp Web application. Notably, users will be allowed the flexibility to change their WhatsApp username at any time, according to the previous report.