On Tuesday, WhatsApp announced a new feature that will now allow users to save contacts within the app. This means that if you lose your phone or you link a new device to your primary number, you will still be able to see all the contacts saved in WhatsApp’s cloud storage. Until now, WhatsApp would To sync contacts. If someone new messaged you on the app and you wanted to save their information, that information was stored locally on your device.
This new feature coming soon will let you store contacts on any device, including WhatsApp Web and Windows. If you want, you can also sync the contacts saved within WhatsApp to your phone.
Last year, the company allowed users to log into two WhatsApp accounts on one device. Saving contacts associated with a WhatsApp account is useful when you want to keep personal and business contacts separate. Additionally, if you share the device with someone else, you can maintain your own list of contacts associated with your number.
WhatsApp said it has developed a new encrypted storage system called Identity Proof Linked Storage (IPLS) to enable this secure contact saving. When users save a contact, the system generates an encryption key on the device. This process retrieves the contact by verifying the identity of the client’s primary device.
Additionally, the app will work with Cloudflare to sign any changes to cryptographic properties, ensuring that contacts saved in WhatsApp have not been edited by anyone.
The company also said that through the technology of contact storing feature, users will also get the facility to save contacts by username.
“Usernames on WhatsApp add an extra layer of privacy so you don’t have to share your phone number to message someone,” the company explained in a blog post.