WhatsApp is reportedly working on a new feature that will allow users to create a username for their account, eliminating the need to show their phone number when connecting with other users.
The feature, first reported by WABetaInfo (via Tecnoblog), was spotted in the code of a recent iOS update released via the TestFlight beta Program. WABetaInfo noted that the feature is currently in development and is not yet available for beta testing.
Being able to create a username instead of giving your phone number is both a security measure and a personalization feature, enabling users to express their identity uniquely while at the same time maintaining privacy.
According to WABetaInfo’s findings, WhatsApp will lay out some rules around how you’ll be able to select a username, in a bid to ensure consistency and security.
For example, to prevent other users from thinking they’re communicating with an official website, you won’t be able to create a name that starts with “www”. Nor will you be able to end a name with a domain like “.com”.
For a cleaner look, WhatsApp account names will have to be created in lower case letters, with numbers, periods, and underscores also allowed.
Additionally, your WhatsApp username will have to contain at least 3 characters and cannot exceed 30.
“Once a username that meets all the above criteria is chosen by the user, a confirmation screen will appear,” WABetaInfo said in its report. “This screen includes a celebratory animation with confetti, and it will confirm that the username has been successfully linked to the user’s account. From that moment on, people who do not have the user’s phone number will see the username instead, both when initiating a new conversation and within group chats.”
To reiterate, the feature is under development and is likely to come as part of a future update to WhatsApp, hopefully before too long.
The new feature would bring WhatsApp in line with other messaging platforms like Signal and Telegram, which both require phone numbers to register but allow users to connect via a username rather than the account’s phone number.
WhatsApp hit the headlines again recently with the long-awaited launch of an iPad version of its messaging service. As you’d expect, WhatsApp for iPad offers multi-tasking features such as Split View, Slide Over, and Stage Manager, bringing a more productive, as well as pleasant, user experience.
