WhatsApp for iOS gets Suspicious Link and other features; stops support for old devices

WhatsApp for iOS has been updated to get many new improvements and features. The update has taken the app to the version number 2.18.90. Unfortunately, this version of the messaging app doesn't support iOS 7 anymore. Eventually, the users of iPhone 4, 4S, 5 and 5S running iOS 7 will not be able to download the latest versions of WhatsApp.

According to WABetaInfo, the fansite that tracks all the changes and updates happening on WhatsApp, the devices running iOS 7 will still support the 2.18.81 version of the app until February 1, 2020. And, the iPhones running iOS 8 and above can get all the updates and new features without any glitches. The report goes on noting that the latest version of the app will not support iOS 12 officially and developers are working on the same.

Newly added WhatsApp features

Talking about the features added to the app, WhatsApp for iOS gets the Suspicious Link feature that will help users know if they have received any suspicious link from others. The app analyzes the links that are shared to find out if they are suspicious. Usually, harmful and malicious links will have unusual characters and might be involved in sending user data to any server. There is a new FAQ section on its official website for this feature and it notes that the app will not collect detected suspicious links. All it does is just warn the users with a pop-up message in red.

This feature will let users take a preview of the images and GIFs directly from the notifications. It also lets users download the images and GIFs from the notifications. This is definitely a great feature for those who do not want to open the app each time they receive a message. In addition to these, the update also adds Wallet support to the app. Lastly, the update lets users see the profile picture of their contacts next to their names while they view any status update. Also, the feature lets them search through the status updates.

Notably, some of these features such as the Suspicious Links and the ability to preview and download images and GIFs from the notifications have already been rolled out to the Android version of the app.