Update: WhatsApp allows all users to enable message disappearing by default in all chats.

WhatsApp plans to offer an option to force messages to be deleted after 24 hours. This is based on a similar feature announced last year (an option to make messages disappear after 7 days), as the messaging app is working on setting a shorter auto-delete time, according to WABetaInfo.

Even though the feature was welcomed at the time, the deletion window was generally perceived as too wide. The new leak suggests that messaging platforms are trying to bring their services more in line with the likes of Telegram, which already offers the ability to automatically delete messages after 24 hours.

WABetaInfo posted screenshots of the new feature in the iOS version of the app, and the news reinforces speculation that the feature will be available for both iOS and Android.

The 7-day message deletion option will remain, but there is no word yet on whether the new setting will be extended for group moderators.

Privacy-sensitive users will appreciate the shorter timeframe news.

Signal already has an auto-delete option for messages, including the ability to make messages disappear after just five seconds, as Telegram does. This is a huge difference compared to WhatsApp's existing 7-day window.

This feature is still in the testing phase. However, according to WABetaInfo, the fact that this feature is shown in the working UI suggests that it will be "a couple of months away" before it is included in the beta builds.

With the increasingly competitive world of instant messaging, it is only natural that Facebook would enhance WhatsApp's capabilities. And it appears that more upgrades are on the way.