WhatsApp contains code to link multiple devices to one account

WhatsApp is said to be busy developing a function to be able to send messages from different devices on one account. That is not possible now, although users can send messages via WhatsApp Web from desktops.

Source: WABetaInfo

WhatsApp would let others know that you are logged in or logged out of other devices by a notification like it now happens when users switch phones, WABetaInfo reports. That site has found references to the new feature in beta versions of WhatsApp. The function has been in development for a while, the site claims. WABetaInfo reported a rumor last year that the feature might be coming.

This would make it possible for the first time to log in via WhatsApp on multiple devices with the same account. WhatsApp Web and the desktop programs are just a conduit and the phone the account is on must be online for it to function. Other chat apps such as competitor Telegram do offer the possibility to use the same account on multiple devices.

It is unknown how multi-device support works with end-to-end encryption in the chat app. WhatsApp has not yet responded to the rumor. In addition to logging into multiple devices, WABetaInfo also mentions a feature to automatically delete messages after a preset time.