7 Hidden Secrets of WhatsApp You Need To Know About

We communicate with it, share our stories and news, pass on our pictures and laugh at funny memes. Let's face it - the social messaging service is a way of life. How would we plan our post-work drinks, weekends away or hot dates without it?! Here's us 'fessing up... we just couldn't cope! The social service has over a BILLION users and organises our lives for us... but there are a few nifty tricks you NEED to know about to get the most our of your phone.

1. What the heck does that little yellow box mean?!
If you're a prolific WhatsApp user and you thumbs are practically glued to your phone, you'll definitely have noticed the new message on a custard-oloured backdrop that's been popping up all over the place. Well fear not. You haven't been hacked by aliens, or worse, the government... no, instead the notification is actually a good thing. This end-to-end encryption (which let's fact it, sounds like something out of X-Men rather than our day to day lives), means that virtually no-one will be able to read your messages, unless they have full access to your phone AND password. So it's so long hackers and cyber sauce-pots - who're the real suckers now?

2. Rid yourself of the infamous blue tick! Those pesky aqua-coloured notifications - many friendships and relationships have been lost to their evil cause...

Our tip top advice. Leave them all behind. Hark back to to the '60s halcyon days of feel live and flower power and embrace a freer life! Buried deep within your Settings is your Account and within that - your salvation! (Also know as your Privacy setting.) Turn it all off and never again will you have to deal with those horrible little squirts again. Say it with me now... HALLELUJAH!
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3. If you can't beat 'em, join 'em!
If you're reeeeeally determined to keep the little fellas (after all, turning off the ticks means you won't be able to see if other people have read your messages either - yeah, it works both ways unfortunately), then you'll need to trick the beast. The sending of a read receipt aka. a double blue tick, replies on having access to wifi, 3G AND 4G. Ergo - by putting your phone on airplane mode and switching all your internet connections off whilst you sneakily check the message - it's appear unread to the sender. TA DA! Go forth and use your new powers wisely you crafty badger, you.

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4. Go dark and prevent people knowing when you are online
Another handy function in the Privacy setting is effectively being able to hide when you were last online. You can customise your Last Seen settings, disallowing either certain people or everyone from knowing when you were last online. Creeeeeepyyy. Read more: Move Over iPhone selfie sticks, it's time for the ULTIMATE MacBook Selfie

5. MAKE YOUR POINT WITHOUT USING CAPS LOCK!!! Whoops...
Let's face it, writing in capital letter all the time, gives us a headache from all the imaginary shouting. Using bold or italics is a subtler way of getting your point across, without sounding like a madman. Hey, we're here to help.

6. Check out who your REAL friends are:
Another cool trick on your phone is discovering who you chat more than ANYONE else. Firstly find your storage usage button...
Within this magical button is the answer to all your questions...
7. Save your history

Last but by no means least in our little box of treasures is a truly magical trick. Hidden away in your phone is a brilliant and under-used button called chat backup. Just go to our trusty settings and tap chats. In there you'll find an option to auto-backup. You can also restore deleted messages by reinstalling history.