WhatsApp messaging app has announced that it would stop working on millions of phones around the world by the end of December, as they reach the end of their supported lifespan.

The Facebook-owned app, which made the announcement via its support page, disclosed that users on a variety of older handsets could end up losing access to the messaging app.

The company said that any phone running the Windows Mobile operating system will not be supported after this date.

Also, any iPhone running software older than iOS 7 will no longer be supported and neither will any Android device with version 2.3.7 installed.

The iOS and Android blocks won’t happen this month but will take place on February 1, 2020.

WhatsApp says that anyone using these older phones can no longer create new accounts or re-verify existing accounts.

“Because we no longer actively develop for these operating systems, some features might stop functioning at any time,” the company said.

WhatsApp regularly stops support for older devices, forcing users to keep up to date if they want to continue using the app.

WhatsApp said to justify why it routinely strips support for older operating systems.

“While these mobile devices have been an important part of our story, they don’t offer the kind of capabilities we need to expand our app’s features in the future.

“This was a tough decision for us to make, but the right one in order to give people better ways to keep in touch with friends, family, and loved ones using WhatsApp.

“If you use one of these affected mobile devices, we recommend upgrading to a newer Android, iPhone, or Windows Phone to continue using WhatsApp.”