Many messaging apps let you send disappearing messages, but Signal’s approach to the process is one of the best. It’s another great reason to start using the encrypted chat app if you’re looking for privacy-focused messaging—or if you’re an Elon Musk fan.
As the name implies, Signal’s disappearing messages self-destruct after a set amount of time. Deleted messages are permanently removed from the chat thread for both users in the conversation. That makes them a great option when you’re sending potentially sensitive information that you don’t want accessible for longer than necessary.
Obviously, disappearing messages can enhance your Signal conversation’s privacy and security, but there are limitations. Even though disappearing messages are deleted from both users’ message history, either user can still take a screenshot before they’re removed, or copy and paste their contents elsewhere. If your recipient is especially clever, they can use another device to take a photo of the disappearing material in question.
While you can block screenshots in Signal on your own device, there’s no way to prevent the recipient from saving a message before it’s deleted. Only send private information to contacts you trust.
That said, you can control how long a message remains in the chat before its deleted. The smaller the window of time, the less likely it is someone can successfully save it.
Signal messages do not disappear by default, but the feature can be turned on or off at any time for individual conversations using either of the two methods below. Note that disappearing messages only works for one-on-one conversations between users who are both using Signal; it’s unavailable in group chats, and it cannot be used if the other person is using a different SMS app.
Turn on disappearing messages from the quick menu:
Open signal, then open a conversation or start a new one.
Tap the three-dot button in the upper-right of the conversation.
Tap “Disappearing Messages.”
Select how long to display messages before they’re deleted. The quickest is 5 seconds, and the longest is 1 week.
Turn on disappearing messages from the conversation settings:
Open a conversation then tap your contact’s name at the top of a conversation window.
In the conversation menu, tap “Disappearing Messages” to turn it on (or off) for this conversation
Use the menu to select the message deletion time limit.
The 2020 presidential election is November 3, meaning the clock is ticking for voters who need to complete or update their registration. The good news
Even though the feature has been around for some time, lots of people are using the launch of iOS 14 to trick out their iPhone’s various pages and cus
No, you’re not getting an iPhone 12, not now, and certainly not for free. As of this writing, there is no iPhone 12—it only exists in the realm of rum
Well, here we are. And yes, that’s Apple’s Craig Federighi peering lovingly at Apple’s big move to its own silicon—the M1 chip, the first system-on-a-
I thought I had lost it, because something felt off about the URLs I was pasting in to Lifehacker’s Slack the other day. Rather than appearing as regu
Last year, Facebook merged WhatsApp, Facebook Messenger, and Instagram’s private messages into a single messaging platform. While each app remains a s
![Why Graphics Cards Are Even More Expensive in 2021 [Updated]](https://img.gamelinxhub.com/images/hero-image.fill.size_245x138.v1699835937.jpg)
Nvidia and AMD’s high-end graphics cards were already expensive in 2020 (if you could find them), but their prices are only going up. And we’re finall
ASMR content has been around for years, most of it hosted on YouTube. The acronym stands for autonomous sensory meridian response, and content in the
We are a comprehensive and trusted information platform dedicated to delivering high-quality content across a wide range of topics, including society, technology, business, health, culture, and entertainment.
From breaking news to in-depth reports, we adhere to the principles of accuracy and diverse perspectives, helping readers find clarity and reliability in today’s fast-paced information landscape.
Our goal is to be a dependable source of knowledge for every reader—making information not only accessible but truly trustworthy. Looking ahead, we will continue to enhance our content and services, connecting the world and delivering value.
