“Once it officially goes live, users who activate it will be prompted to authenticate with a fingerprint scan every time they open the app.”
WhatsApp engineers are working on a biometric authentication feature based on fingerprint recognition for Android users, according to a report from India’s Business Today.
The report suggests that the biometric security feature has already been made available to some users through a software update delivered via the Google Play Beta Program. Once it officially goes live, users who activate it will be prompted to authenticate with a fingerprint scan every time they open the app.
There are currently biometric authentication systems for WhatsApp available from third party developers, but Business Today asserts that the new in-house feature will render them redundant.
A similar system is also in the pipeline for iOS, though whether it will take advantage of the Face ID 3D facial recognition system on the latest iPhones is not yet clear.
In any case, a fingerprint unlock feature will likely come as a welcome development for iPhone and Android users alike, with fingerprint authentication being an increasingly popular security mechanism on mobile devices.
Source: Business Today
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