Users will soon be able to share stories with their friends via a new feature being rolled out by privacy-focused messaging service Signal. Stories created on Signal will be automatically erased after 24 hours, much like Snapchat and Instagram, with users given the option to delete them earlier if they like.
Here’s How the New Feature Will Work
Signal has chosen to handle the story viewing feature in a more comprehensive manner. All Signal users in a user’s phone contact list, anyone who has had a 1:1 chat with a user on Signal (even without adding a contact), and anyone whose message request has been approved on Signal can share and watch stories. Additionally, users have the option to manually hide their stories from certain individuals. Users can also construct their own unique formats to keep track of who has viewed their stories and share the content with a more limited group of individuals or groups. Anyone in the group can view a user’s narrative when it is shared in one of the group conversations the user has already created, as well as any comments and responses made by other members. Even if one hasn’t interacted with another group member directly, one can still see the updates that other members share to the shared tale. On Signal, users may share text, image, and video updates to their stories. Stories can be erased before they automatically expire 24 hours after being shared. To achieve this, go to settings, select “stories,” and then turn off stories to retain the highest level of privacy. The goal, according to the site, is to give users the option to disable stories and stop broadcasting them to people who won’t be aware that they have chosen not to get the updates. Stories are end-to-end encrypted, just like everything else on the app. Signal has become a popular instant messaging choice in recent years for many users seeking increased privacy and stronger end-to-end encryption requirements. When Meta’s network of apps and services, including the WhatsApp messenger, went offline for a prolonged period of time in October of last year, user sign-ups for the private messaging programme, which was also sponsored by computer analyst whistleblower Edward Snowden, skyrocketed.
