Meta (Facebook)-owned instant messaging app, WhatsApp, is rolling out a new search feature that will tell you about the businesses nearby. The feature has been released for some people in Sao Paulo and it will be rolled out to more people in the future, noted WhatsApp tracker, WABetaInfo. This new cool feature will be available to both iOS and Android users. It will be helpful for the WhatsApp users to search for hotels, eateries, grocery or clothing stores, etc, without leaving the app actually.“When you search for something within WhatsApp, there will be a new section called “Businesses Nearby": when you select the category, the results of business accounts will be filtered based on your choice," said WABetaInfo.This feature is not available yet, but it will be available in a future update for people that can already use the Business Directory. Unfortunately, there is no information about the ability to use features from the Business Directory for people that don’t live in Sao Paulo.In a future update of WhatsApp beta for iOS and Android, WhatsApp is also planning to introduce the same redesigned page for Contact Info. WhatsApp will use the same interface that has been introduced for Business Info, but there is a small addition, the Contact Info page will introduce a search shortcut, found out the tracker.
Not only this, after releasing the WhatsApp beta for iOS 2.21.170.12 update, WhatsApp has introduced a redesigned page for Business Info: it is very similar to iOS contact cards when you open your address book and, on Android, it also allows opening their status updates.
WhatsApp's enormous user base make it an obvious target for cybercriminals, many of which center around WhatsApp Web. For years, WhatsApp has allowed you to open a website, or download a desktop app, scan a code with the app on your phone, and use WhatsApp on your computer.
The app store on your phone---the App Store on iOS and Google Play Store on Android---are more carefully regulated than the internet at large. When you search for WhatsApp on those stores, it's generally clear which app is the official one. That isn't true of the wider internet.
Criminals, hackers, and scammers have all taken advantage of this. There have been instances of attackers passing off malicious software as WhatsApp desktop applications. If you are unfortunate enough to have downloaded one of these, the installation can distribute malware or otherwise compromise your computer.
In some cases, hackers were able to install WhatsApp spyware due to a vulnerability.
Others tried a different approach, creating phishing websites to trick you into handing over personal information. Some of these websites masquerade as WhatsApp Web, asking for you to enter your phone number to connect to the service. However, they actually use that number to bombard you with spam or correlate with other leaked or hacked data on the internet.
To be on the safe side, the best way to stay secure is to use only apps and services from official sources. WhatsApp offers a web client for you to use on any computer, known as WhatsApp Web. There are also official apps for Android, iPhone, macOS, and Windows devices.
You must be logged in to post a comment.