WhatsApp Is Testing This Exclusive Feature for iPhone Users: Messages Will Vanish After Being Read.

WhatsApp is currently testing a new privacy feature for iPhone users that will automatically make messages disappear a short while after they have been read. Dubbed the ‘After Reading’ Mode, this feature has currently been rolled out to iOS beta users and promises to offer users greater control and privacy over their chats. Let's take a closer look...

WhatsApp is once again gearing up to further enhance user privacy. The company is testing a new "Disappearing Messages" feature specifically for iPhone users, which is reportedly being referred to as the ‘After Reading’ Mode. Under this feature, messages will automatically delete themselves after they have been read. Currently, WhatsApp offers timers of 24 hours, 7 days, and 90 days for Disappearing Messages; however, this new feature will function slightly differently than the existing system. According to reports, this feature has currently been made available to a select group of iOS beta users via Apple's TestFlight program. The feature tracker WABetaInfo was the first to share this information.

How Exactly Will the ‘After Reading’ Mode Work?

The most distinctive aspect of this new feature is that the countdown for message deletion does not begin the moment the message is sent. In the current Disappearing Messages system, the timer starts running the instant a message is dispatched. However, this will not be the case with the ‘After Reading’ Mode. In this mode, a message will remain visible in the chat until the recipient opens and reads it; once the message has been read, the countdown for the selected time duration will begin, after which the message will automatically vanish. For instance, if a user selects a 5-minute timer, the message will be completely deleted 5 minutes after it has been read.

What Timer Options Can Users Expect?

According to reports, WhatsApp is testing several timer options for this feature. Users may be offered choices such as 5 minutes, 1 hour, and 12 hours. However, the company has also implemented an additional safeguard: if the recipient never opens the message at all, the message will still automatically delete itself after 24 hours. In other words, unread messages will not remain in the chat indefinitely. This feature will be entirely optional, and users will have to enable it manually. Notably, it can be applied on a per-chat basis, meaning you can choose to enable it for a specific chat while keeping the standard settings for others.

When will this WhatsApp feature become available to all users?

Over the past few years, WhatsApp has consistently placed a greater emphasis on privacy features. Features such as "View Once" photos and videos, Chat Lock, screenshot blocking, and Disappearing Messages have already been added to the app. The new "After Reading" feature is also being viewed as a significant step in this direction. Currently, this feature is available only to a select group of iOS beta users; according to reports, it has been spotted in WhatsApp beta for iOS version 26.19.10.72. The company has not yet announced a global rollout for this feature, but it is expected to be tested with a wider user base in the coming weeks.