Twitter intends to support encrypted direct messages “today” and then add voice and video calls.

The CEO of Twitter, Elon Musk, announced today, Wednesday, that the social media platform plans to launch an encrypted direct messaging feature “later” as part of its efforts to enhance communication features among users.

In a tweet, Musk stated that the latest version of the Twitter application includes changes to the direct messaging feature, which refers to private messages sent between users.

The billionaire, who acquired Twitter in late October last year, mentioned that users can now reply to any message in a thread of direct messages, not just the latest ones, and they can also use any emoji to respond to messages.

Previously, Twitter limited users’ ability to reply only to the latest message in a thread of direct messages and only allowed specific emoji responses.

Musk announced that encrypted direct messages would be launched on Wednesday.

Encryption in messages means that only the sender and the recipient can see the message. In theory, Twitter and Musk will not be able to view or intercept direct messages exchanged between individuals.

Meta, the parent company of Facebook, announced in January an expansion of end-to-end encryption testing in its instant messaging app, Messenger. Its subsidiary, WhatsApp, has also supported encrypted messaging for many years.

Encrypted messaging services have gained popularity in recent years, with users focusing on privacy.

Musk also mentioned that voice and video calls will be added to Twitter soon, allowing users to “talk to people anywhere in the world” without giving out their phone number.

Since its establishment in 2006, Twitter’s direct messaging feature has not received much attention from previous CEOs. However, Musk has repeatedly expressed his intention to transform Twitter into a “comprehensive application” that offers various services such as messaging, financial services, and more.

It is worth noting that the announcement of support for encrypted direct messages comes two days after Musk’s announcement of a plan to “purge” old Twitter accounts that have been inactive for years.