WhatsApp will soon be ending support of its instant messaging application for iOS 10 and iOS 11 on Oct 24.
First reported by WABetaInfo, the latest update indicates that iOS 10 and iOS 11 users would need to update their Apple device to a newer iOS version to continue using WhatsApp.
A quick check by LifestyleTech on WhatsApp’s official Help Center page shows that the company provides supports for, and recommends use of, Apple devices operated on iOS 12 and newer.
This means that iPhone 5s, 6, 6s or newer device users can still continue using the app, while iPhone 5 and 5c users may need to consider getting a new device due to unavailability of iOS 12 on these devices – this might not affect many though, as the devices came out about a decade ago.
Affected users should receive a notification in the app ahead of time.
In choosing what operating systems to support, the company says it considers areas like number of users and security updates.
As for Android and KaiOS operated devices, WhatsApp recommends OS 4.1 and newer, and KaiOS 2.5.0 and newer, including the JioPhone and JioPhone 2.