You can now turn off the Last Seen timestamp on Whatsapp on Android smartphones after the messenging service rolled out a feature to disable it in their new update. To get the feature Android users will have to have smartphones that are running on Android 2.1 or newer versions. The feature has been available on IoS for a while.
How to turn off the Last Seen timestamp on WhatsApp
1. Go to Settings menu and enable ‘Download from Unknown Sources’ in the Security tab.
2. Go to whatsapp.com/Android from your mobile phone and download the APK file for Whatsapp.
3. After the APK file is downloaded, tap on it. It will show two options, select ‘Package Installer’.
4. You will get a message saying that this application will make changes to WhatsApp; allow it to alter the app. All your WhatsApp data will be retained despite the update.
5. After you have updated WhatsApp go to select Settings → Account → Privacy. You will see the ‘Last Seen’ option here, with three options – Everyone, My Contacts and Nobody. Select the options that suits you best. You can also restricting who can see your profile photo and status in the privacy menu.
Note: When you stop others from seeing your Last Seen timestamp, you will not be able to see theirs either.