Overview
- WhatsApp introduced the incognito chat on Wednesday in a phased rollout, with early access reported in Argentina and broader availability coming to Android, iOS and the web.
- Messages are end-to-end encrypted and processed inside Trusted Execution Environments, so Meta says it cannot read them, and conversations are not stored and disappear by default.
- The feature is text-only at launch, so image tools are not available, and Meta says a protected side chat that brings private AI help into existing threads will follow.
- Meta says guardrails remain in place, including content limits and prompts that suggest getting professional help for mental health concerns.
- Reporters praised the privacy design but warned that vanishing chats could erase evidence useful to investigations and urged outside audits of Meta’s technical claims, which include anonymous routing such as Oblivious HTTP.