A new update on instant messaging platform WhatsApp will allow users to delete photos and videos from other people's phones.

We've put together everything we know so far about how it works.

What is the new update?

According to tech news website WABetaInfo, WhatsApp is working on a new feature called Expiring Media, an extension of the Expiring Messages feature.

The site reported that WhatsApp recently submitted a new update through the Google Play Beta Program, bringing the version up to 2.20.201.1.

In a slighty similar vain to social messaging app Snapchat, the feature works when the user decides to send an expiring media (images, videos and GIFs), the media will disappear in the recipient’s phone, once they leave the chat.

The tech news website added: "Expiring media will appear in a different way in the conversation, so you can easily understand that the image is going to expire.

"At the moment there is no track about a screenshot detection for expiring media."

No further details have been revealed about the update, nor when it will be rolled out to all devices.

Who owns WhatsApp?

WhatsApp is owned by Facebook. It was bought by the social media giant back in 2014 for about $19 billion.

In February this year, the company revealed that two billion people worldwide now use the service, which is more than a quarter of the world’s population.

What have WhatsApp said about the update?

The social media platform have yet to make a comment on the update.