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WhatsApp Finally Allows Users To Edit Messages, But You'll Have To Act Fast

The feature is already being rolled out to users globally.

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WhatsApp has answered the prayers of users who are always looking to change something in the message they just sent.

The latest: The instant messaging platform has allowed users to modify a message within a limited window of 15 minutes, according to a Facebook post by Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg on Monday, 22 May.

  • The feature is already being rolled out to users globally, as per a blog post by the chat app's parent company.

  • It will be available to everyone in a few weeks, Meta said.

In the chats: "All you need to do is long-press on a sent message and choose Edit from the menu for up to 15 minutes after," it added.

Yes, but: Recipients will be able to see that the message has been edited as any such message will carry an "edited" tag next to the timestamp.

  • However, previous versions of edited messages and the correction history will not be visible to recipients.

Why it matters: "From correcting a simple misspelling to adding extra context to a message, we’re excited to bring you more control over your chats," the big tech company said. Notably, it said that edited messages will still be protected by end-to-end encryption.

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So far, deleting the message or sending a separate correction was the only fix available to users.

  • The time frame to delete a WhatsApp message was increased from 48 hours to 60 hours last year.

Late to the party? WhatsApp is playing catch-up as rival platforms Telegram and Signal have always offered users the edit button.

  • iMessage users had also won the edit button as part of the iOS 16 update in 2022.

  • Even Twitter bowed to demands and unveiled the edit option – albeit only for Twitter Blue subscribers.

Meanwhile, Tinder does not appear to have an edit or delete option but that could be by design.

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