New Delhi (NVI): Whatsapp today said that it has rolled out a new feature change to slow the spread of misinformation amid the COVID-19 outbreak.
The popular Facebook-owned chat app now seeks to slow the dissemination of fake news, the company announced today.
Whatsapp has introduced a new limit under which frequently forwarded messages can only be forwarded to one chat at a time. This limit kicks in once a message has been previously forwarded 5 times or more, the company said.
The popular messaging app has also released its beta version recently that empowers users to find out more information around these kinds of messages.
The idea involves displaying a magnifying glass icon next to these frequently forwarded messages, giving users the option to send that message to a web search where they can find news results or other sources of information. Double-checking these messages before forwarding may help reduce the spread of rumors, the company said in a statement.
However, the feature is in the testing stage at present and Whatsapp will inform its users when it is ready.
