New Delhi, June 30 -- WhatsApp is finally beginning to give users the ability to maintain the privacy of their mobile number while chatting on the personal messaging app. There have been rumors about Meta owned app opting for a username based system for a few months but the company made the announcement official in a blog on Monday where it also said that reservations for these usernames would go live from next week.

While the username can be reserved from next week, the feature itself will be coming out to WhatsApp users 'later this year'.

"Usernames are our latest step to make WhatsApp even more private. There's no directory to browse and no suggestions - people will need to know your exact username to contact you for the first time" ...