Instagram introduced the Close Friends feature for Stories in November 2018, and later, specifically last September, reports emerged that WhatsApp was working on bringing the same feature to its app.
Now, new information reveals that WhatsApp is also testing a custom menus feature to display status, in a move aimed at giving users broader control over privacy.
This revelation came via the WABetaInfo website, which monitored the custom lists feature under development within beta version No. 2.26.5.11 of WhatsApp on Android.
This feature allows you to create different lists of contacts to determine who can see the status. For example, you could create a list for family and another for coworkers, similar to Facebook’s custom privacy settings.
According to the report, the user will be able to choose a name and emoji for each custom list. Any modifications to listings will only be applied when a new status is posted. In other words, if a user removes a contact from the list after posting a status, that contact will still be able to see the current status, but they won’t see new statuses later.
WABetaInfo also posted a screenshot showing the Close Friends option alongside the three status privacy options currently available in WhatsApp.
As of now, the Close Friends and Custom Lists features are still not available to users, including beta subscribers, which means their official rollout will take some time.
