WhatsApp adds a password option for two-step verification, plus multiple passkeys

WhatsApp has announced three changes to how you protect and log in to your account. The biggest one: two-step verification, which until now used a six-digit PIN, can be replaced with a proper password. WABetaInfo reports the password needs at least eight characters, with at least one letter and at least one number. A password has far more possible combinations than a PIN, so it is harder to guess.

The second change is for Android users only. When a call comes in from a number that is not in your contacts, WhatsApp can now show extra context about it — for example, whether the number belongs to a different country, and how many groups you and the caller both belong to. That gives you something to go on before you decide to pick up.

Third, you can now register more than one passkey on your account instead of just one, which helps if you sign in from more than one device. The features are rolling out on the latest versions of WhatsApp for iOS and Android, but not everyone has them yet. WABetaInfo notes the password option is reaching some users first and will widen over time, so it may not appear in your account settings straight away.