WhatsApp is developing a new feature that will allow users to share statuses only with close friends. This feature is not yet available and will be launched in a future update.
Through this feature, users can create a list of close friends through the privacy settings. When uploading a status, they can choose whether to share it with everyone or only with close friends. Statuses shared with close friends will be marked with a special color so that they can be easily identified.
This function is very similar to the ‘Close Friends’ feature in the Instagram application, where users can share more personal content with selected followers.
The list of close friends can be changed at any time without any notification to those added or removed. This change can only be applied to new statuses. If users want to change the list of recipients of old statuses, they will need to delete them first and upload them again.
Status updates will permanently disappear after 24 hours and are protected by end-to-end encryption (E2EE). This means that only the selected recipients can see the content and WhatsApp itself cannot access it. This feature is believed to provide more control and privacy to users.