If you have conversations with sensitive or delicate information on WhatsApp, we suggest a method to delete messages automatically. So you don’t have to delete them yourself.
Sometimes we are not aware of all the information we post on WhatsApp. Or put another way. If someone had access to your WhatsApp conversations, would it be a big problem for you? Probably yes. It’s more. On several occasions you will have deleted a message . Just send it. And if you do it frequently, why not delete WhatsApp messages automatically?
It is not about deleting all WhatsApp and starting from scratch. Simply, in a certain conversation or WhatsApp group, you may want that, after a few days, the messages you have sent are automatically deleted. So you don’t have to worry if your phone falls into the wrong hands. One more security measure that joins the WhatsApp lock by password, fingerprint or facial recognition.
You could delete the messages yourself. It’s more. You probably do from time to time. But with this WhatsApp function you can do it automatically. And with the possibility of choosing what the expiration date will be for those messages that you have sent in conversations or WhatsApp groups that you previously choose.
Delete messages automatically
In order for your WhatsApp messages to delete themselves automatically, you must use the temporary messages function . It is available for all versions of WhatsApp, so you will have no problem activating, configuring and deactivating it. In addition, it allows you to decide in which groups and conversations the messages will be deleted and leave the rest to your own devices. Depending on which messages you are interested in deleting.
To activate WhatsApp temporary messages , and thus delete messages automatically, you will have to open WhatsApp and go to the conversation or group in which you are interested in automatically deleting messages. That is, you will have to click on the name of the contact or group. Once inside that menu, go to Temporary Messages . WhatsApp gives you a choice between three time periods so that the messages you send from now on are deleted on their own .
Choose between 24 hours, 7 days or 90 days. Then you can decide in which chats to activate temporary messages or automatic deletion. Note that the feature affects all messages . Yours and those of the rest of the components of a conversation or group. On the other hand, you can bookmark multiple channels, groups, and conversations. Once marked, click on Ok or Accept and that’s it. The messages that are being sent will disappear after the time that you have previously chosen. Those messages will be deleted automatically. Something less to worry about.
Delete messages from all chats
If you use WhatsApp to share sensitive data or information on a regular basis, you may prefer that all WhatsApp is automatically deleted. In that case, you will have to go to Settings> Account> Privacy> Default message duration and choose one of the available options: 24 hours, 7 days or 90 days.
Keep in mind that this option affects all WhatsApp conversations or groups. If you have any exceptions, it is better to use the above method and mark only those channels where messages will be deleted.
Disadvantages of deleting messages
WhatsApp temporary messages have their pros and cons . Once this function is activated, it affects new messages. Not the previous ones. Anyone can turn on the feature if they are part of a conversation or group. In the case of groups, administrators can change their settings.
But not all are advantages when deleting messages automatically. There are also drawbacks . Even if someone doesn’t open WhatsApp and the message is deleted, they may still see the preview in their notifications. More inconvenience. “If you reply to a temporary message, the quoted text may remain in the chat after the selected duration.” And “ if a temporary message is forwarded to a chat with temporary messages turned off, the message will not disappear from that chat”.
Deleted messages will also be kept in backups if they were created before the message was deleted. And nothing prevents someone from copying and pasting the message. Of course, screenshots will no longer be allowed shortly.
Photos and videos in temporary messages
If you send messages that include photos, videos, or media files in general, according to WhatsApp, “media files sent in that chat will disappear , but will be saved on your phone if automatic download is enabled.” That is, that photos and videos will be automatically deleted when you activate the temporary messages function.
But that does not prevent that if someone saves that content with the automatic download of WhatsApp, those photos and videos will remain on the device outside of WhatsApp. The solution does not depend on you, but it consists of deactivating the automatic download of WhatsApp. It is done from WhatsApp, by going to Settings> Storage and data .
Disable auto delete
To deactivate the automatic deletion of WhatsApp messages, you just have to enter WhatsApp and enter one of the groups or conversations that you have previously marked as temporary. Once there, go to Temporary Messages and finally tap on Disabled . There you can select in which chats to deactivate the function. From now on, messages from these groups and conversations will no longer be deleted automatically.
The advantage of this is that you can disable message deletion in some conversations and groups but not all. So you can keep temporary messages in other groups or chats without having to configure them again. Please note that turning this feature off will affect new messages you send, not old ones.
