WhatsApp has launched end-to-end encrypted backups that will allow users to protect all their stored messages, photos, videos and calls with a password or 64-digit key.
The feature is being rolled out globally to iOS and Android users to provide an 'optional extra layer of protection' to existing backups, according to a spokesperson for the social media giant.
Facebook, which owns WhatsApp, said that with end-to-end encrypted backups, the entire messaging process is now more secure, even when stored in the cloud.
It claims no other messaging service on the scale of WhatsApp 'provides that level of overall security for users content'.
The update means that, on top of the encryption provided by cloud storage solutions like iCloud, Google Drive and Dropbox, the backup file will also have encryption.
WhatsApp has launched end-to-end encrypted backups that will allow users to protect all their stored messages, photos, videos and calls with a password or 64-digit key
Users can opt to secure their backup file with a 64-digit encryption key, or simply with a password
The firm says the new feature will provide users with more privacy and security for their digital conversations.
It isn't being rolled out all at once, but rather slowly around the world 'to ensure a consistent and reliable user experience for people on iOS and Android.'
'WhatsApp was built on a simple idea: what you share with your friends and family stays between you,' said Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg.
The firm added end-to-end encryption to messages about five years ago, and that protects about 100 billion messages per day shared between two billion users.
However, that only applied to messages sent, received and stored on the user's device, rather than to any of the regular backups made for you by WhatsApp - until now.
'We are making available an extra, optional layer of security to protect backups stored on Google Drive or iCloud with end-to-end encryption,' said Zuckerberg.
'No other global messaging service at this scale provides this level of security for their users' messages, media, voice messages, video calls, and chat backups.'
