You can no longer sneak screenshots of disappearing messages on Facebook Messenger. This is after an update to improve the privacy of the platform.
CEO Mark Zuckerberg has announced the latest update on his Facebook account. From now on, notifications will appear when someone takes a screenshot of disappearing messages in a Secret Conversation secured with end-to-end encryption.
“New update for end-to-end encrypted Messenger chats so you get a notification if someone screenshots a disappearing message,” said Zuckerberg. “We’re also adding GIFs, stickers, and reactions to encrypted chats too,” he added.
The disappearing messages feature was first introduced in 2020 on Facebook messenger, Instagram, and subsequently on WhatsApp. This is to provide additional protection across the company’s messaging platforms.
Although the screenshot notification is nothing new, the new update is still a breakthrough. This is because Facebook has implemented end-to-end encryption (E2EE) across all its platforms. In a nutshell, E2EE is considered the gold standard of privacy and security and a lot more secure than the former server-side encryption.
The server-side encryption uses a key, which the service provider keeps, that can be used to decrypt your data anytime. Therefore, the old server-side encryption is not totally safe as your data and messages can still be accessed by someone. What makes the E2EE totally safe is that your data is encrypted in such a way that only you and the person you’re communicating with can read your messages. Yes, not even your service provider can know about it.
Having said all that, there are features that are difficult to integrate, including notification of screenshots in disappearing messages on Facebook Messenger. This is why it is still kind of a breakthrough that Facebook the company has found a way to provide notifications in E2EE chats.
