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WhatsApp is introducing a new feature in its app called Status that uses a similar format to Snapchat Stories, TechCrunch reports. Like messaging through WhatsApp, however, Status will bring encryption to the popular format.

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Facebook will soon be available on the Apple TV for the first time, the social network confirmed today. As rumored, the upcoming Apple TV app will focus on video playback with personalization features and launch soon.

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The WSJ reports that Facebook is developing an app for the Apple TV and other set-top boxes, citing sources familiar with the matter. It appears the plan is for the videos to be ad-funded, as with existing Facebook content …

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Update: Updated with a response from WhatsApp, below.

A security researcher has found a backdoor in the end-to-end encryption system used by the WhatsApp messaging service. The vulnerability would allow Facebook to read messages sent through the supposedly-secure system, as well as making it possible for the company to comply with court orders to make messages available to government bodies.

While end-to-end encryption would normally mean that not even the company operating the service can decrypt messages, only the intended recipient, the specific implementation used in WhatsApp includes a major security hole …

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Almost a year after adding Live Video to its app, Facebook has announced that it is introducing a Live Audio feature that allows live broadcasts of audio-only content. Or, as CNET wryly described it, radio.

Initially, the company will be testing the feature with a small number of established broadcasters – including the BBC World Service and LBC – though publishers and authors will also be getting in on the action … 

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Facebook appeared to do something of a U-turn back in August, when it started collecting data from WhatsApp despite an earlier statement that its acquisition of the messaging app would not impact user privacy. It has now agreed to cease doing so in the UK after the government privacy watchdog warned it that it may be breaking the law, reports the FT.

Facebook has agreed to pause its collection of WhatsApp user data in the UK as a result of a probe by the Information Commissioner’s Office.

“We’ve set out the law clearly to Facebook, and we’re pleased that they’ve agreed to pause using data from UK WhatsApp users for advertisements or product improvement purposes,” Elizabeth Denham, the information commissioner said.

The UK is not the only country where the legality of Facebook’s actions is being questioned …

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If you’ve ever asked your Facebook friends to recommend a restaurant, a new feature rolling out should make it much easier to check out the responses.

Facebook is using a combination of AI and simple keyword recognition to identify posts asking for recommendations, and will then prompt you to turn on the Recommendations feature. When you do, it will automatically add the restaurants’ Facebook pages to the thread, as well as populating a map with their locations.

Engadget reports that the new feature is intended for use not just with restaurants, but with a range of businesses …

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Facebook today officially announced the release of their Workplace business product. Originally titled Facebook at Work, the new product is set to compete head-on with other similar services like Slack and Hipchat. Riding off the familiarity that users already have with the social network, and its competitively low price-points, Workplace looks like it can be a contender in the business communications demographic…

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While some have questioned the need for strong encryption to protect simple chats between friends, the continuing revelations of mass surveillance by governments does make the issue a matter of principle for some. Just yesterday it was revealed that Yahoo likely allowed the government to scan all of its users’ emails. And, as I’ve argued before, we all have perfectly innocent things to hide.

Facebook began testing Secret Conversations – Facebook Messenger chats protected by end-to-end encryption – back in July, promising a wider rollout later in the year. The company has now told Wired that the rollout is complete, and that the feature is now available to all Facebook users …

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Facebook has long been a convenient place to sell unwanted items, but the audience for your sales has so far been limited to your friends and followers. With the addition of a Marketplace feature on mobile, Facebook allows you to expand your audience to everyone in your local community.

Facebook is where people connect, and in recent years more people have been using Facebook to connect in another way: buying and selling with each other. This activity started in Facebook Groups and has grown substantially. More than 450 million people visit buy and sell groups each month — from families in a local neighborhood to collectors around the world.

To help people make more of these connections, today we’re introducing Marketplace, a convenient destination to discover, buy and sell items with people in your community.

Interestingly, Facebook isn’t getting involved in the transactions themselves …

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iOS 10 lets third-party developers use the standard call look and feel from the Phone app in their own apps with something known as CallKit, and Facebook’s latest update to Messenger is already taking advantage of it. Messenger for iOS has let you make calls over the Internet to your friends for a while, and now incoming calls to Messenger will behave just like standard phone calls. This improved behavior even extends to CarPlay.

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Facebook has confirmed to Mashable that it is testing a new version of autoplay videos in its iOS and Android apps – one that automatically plays the audio also as you scroll through your newsfeed. This contrasts with the normal behaviour, which autoplays the video in silent mode, a tap required to switch on the audio …

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Facebook Messenger is the latest app to adopt end-to-end encryption for its chats, ensuring that conversations cannot be accessed even by Facebook. It’s just in testing so far, but the company says that it will be made available more widely in the course of the summer.

We are starting to test the ability to create one-to-one secret conversations in Messenger that will be end-to-end encrypted and which can only be read on one device of the person you’re communicating with. That means the messages are intended just for you and the other person — not anyone else, including us.

While Apple uses end-to-end encryption as standard for both iMessages and FaceTime, and WhatsApp followed suit in April, Facebook is taking a slightly different approach …

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Facebook today has announced a new Featured Events capability that will make it even easier for users to find nearby ongoings right in the Facebook app itself. While Facebook already has support for Events, with 550 million people taking advantage of it each month, the company hopes that Featured Events will give more a more personalized experience.

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Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg is no stranger to elaborate security. It was reported earlier this year that Facebook has spent more than $16 million on security to protect the executive from “specific threats” from users and other sources. Meanwhile, Zuckerberg has also apparently hired 16 bodyguards to protect him at home. Now, Zuckerberg has inadvertently revealed another security measure he takes – and it’s surprisingly simple.

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