New version BBM gets new privacy features

BlackBerry is going to add two new features to its chat service BBM that should improve user privacy. Among other things, there will be a Snapchat-like function that only makes messages visible for a short time. There will also be an option to ‘revoke’ messages.

An overview of the new functions appeared on the BlackBerry weblog. The new version of BBM should give users more control over their messages. Inspiration seems to have been found mainly in the popular Snapchat: for example, BlackBerry has built in a function that lets users choose how long a message can be visible after receipt.

Should the recipient take a screenshot of the message before it is deleted, the sender will be notified. With the new version of BBM it is also possible to delete sent messages before the recipient has seen them. This is especially useful if the wrong person is being addressed. Incidentally, the ‘withdrawal’ of messages only applies to text; photos cannot be recovered.

According to BlackBerry, the described functions will be released in the next version of BBM that should be released soon. An exact release date is unknown, but the new version is already being tested by a select group of beta testers.