WhatsApp To Limit Sharing Of Forwarded Messages In Group Chats Soon

Synopsis: As per the reports, the updated limit on forwarded messages is still undergoing tests and will be available to all the users in the upcoming days by default with a new WhatsApp update. 

With a number of features already lined up, the Meta-owned (formerly known as Facebook) instant messaging app WhatsApp is yet back to testing a feature that will restrict the limit of forwarding messages in group chats on the instant messaging app. The update will curb the circulation of misinformation that is prominently shared using the feature that allows users to forward messages.

Reports suggest that WhatsApp will bring a new set of regulations in order to limit the spamming of contacts with forwarded messages by letting them share the forwarded message to only one group at once. It also mentions that the limits have been introduced for WhatsApp Beta 2.22.7.2 for Android and iOS as well.

The change was first spotted by WABetaInfo, who shared a screenshot of the feature that is yet to be rolled out for the rest of the users on the platform. The screenshot shows an alert while forwarding a message, which reads, 

Forwarded messages can only be sent to one group chat.

This means, that if users are willing to share any message in multiple groups, they will need to start the process of forwarding the message each time. Because the option of forwarding messages to multiple groups will no longer be available to users once the platform makes the new feature available to each and every user. 

Considerably, this is not the first time that the platform has decided to put a limit on the number of forwarded messages. Earlier, in 2019 during the upward trend of fake news and spam, the company had restricted the number of messages that could be forwarded at once. Till now, any message on WhatsApp can be forwarded to a maximum of five chats at once.

As per the reports, the updated limit on forwarded messages is still undergoing tests and will be available to all the users in the upcoming days by default with a new WhatsApp update. The platform already has several filters for identifying forwarded messages with different marks.

If a message is forwarded once, it marks it with a single arrow, and on the other hand, if the message is forwarded beyond four times, it is marked as ‘frequently forwarded’ in order to inform the person who has received it, about the status of the message.

Recently, WABetaInfo had noted that the Meta-owned platform was working on the message reaction feature that would let the users react to messages like other apps, including, Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, Telegram, and Signal.