Meta, the parent company of Facebook, is reintroducing the option to access Messenger chats directly within the Facebook app after nearly a decade. Initially available in the Facebook app before being moved to a separate Messenger app in 2014, the chat feature was removed from the mobile website in 2016 to encourage users to download the Messenger app. Meta has announced plans to broaden its testing of this feature to more users in the near future. This development follows recent enhancements to Messenger’s end-to-end encryption (E2EE) features.
In a recent blog post, Meta revealed that it is once again bringing message inbox functionality to the Facebook app. The feature is currently being tested by select users and will enable them to share content directly through messages without needing to switch applications. With over 140 billion messages sent daily across Meta’s messaging platforms, the company highlights a notable increase in the private sharing of Reels on the platform.
Furthermore, Meta has launched community chats within select Facebook Groups, facilitating deeper real-time connections among users. The firm noted a 50 percent rise in users engaging with community chats across Facebook and Messenger in December of last year.
This year, Facebook also updated its end-to-end encryption for Messenger chats, introducing several new features and improvements. Some features include personalized chat themes, custom emoji and reactions, group profile photos, link previews, active status updates, and support for chat bubbles on Android devices. The enhanced encryption aims to provide users with an additional layer of security, safeguarding chat content and calls from unauthorized third-party access.
While the integration of opt-in E2EE chat support has been available for several years, Meta is expanding the default encryption capability for more Messenger users. Conversations that utilize E2EE can only be accessed by participants in the chat, ensuring that no third party, including Facebook, can view the messages exchanged.
