If you've recent updated WhatsApp you may have noticed that there are now... blue ticks.
But what do these mysterious signifiers mean? What is their significance? Do they imply some new global conspiracy, some king of iMessage integration or something else bizarrely inexplicable?
Nope.
WhatsApp has explained that the Blue Ticks next to your sent message now just mean that the recipient has read it.
That's right, you can now see if people are ignoring you - and they can see if you're ignoring them.
"If you see two blue check marks next to your sent message, then the recipient has read your message. In a group chat or broadcast message, the check marks will turn blue when every participant has read your message."
The tick solves an issue in which users were not sure if the existing double tick system actually meant your message had been read and not just received.
Now, the system is:
- Single Grey Tick - your message has been sent
- Two Grey Ticks - your message has been delivered
- Two Blue Ticks - your message has been read
If you hold the ticks and press info you can see exactly when the message was read.
In a group message blue ticks mean everyone in the group has read it.
Facebook bought WhatsApp for $19 billion in February 2014, with both parties declaring that the "values" of the messaging app would not change.