Just like in WhatsApp, it is possible to delete private Instagram messages after you have sent them. Private messages disappear from both your screen and other people’s, and there is no time limit.
If you’ve sent someone a private message on Instagram that you regret, you still have time to delete it. Instagram calls this function cancel the message and it works regardless of whether the other person has already read it or not.
How to delete a message on Instagram
Deleting a message (or canceling it, which is what Instagram calls it) is incredibly easy. In the Instagram Direct conversation, long press on the message you want to send until the context menu appears. In it, choose Cancel message.
The first time you cancel a message on Instagram you will be shown a confirmation window. Here you are warned that other people may have already read the message. If you want to continue, tap Cancel Submission.
What types of messages can you delete?
Instagram Direct doesn’t discriminate between the types of messages you can delete, whether or not they’ve been read before, or what time they’re sent. If it is something that you have sent to another person, you can delete it.
That is, you can delete normal chat messages as well as photos and videos sent to the chat, whether you have sent them with a limited number of views or you have sent them to the chat. You can retract any private message you send on Instagram at any time.
What happens when you delete a message
When you delete a private Instagram message, it automatically disappears from both your window and the other person’s. There is no “deleted message” type message as there is in WhatsApp, but the message simply disappears, as if it never existed.
This does not mean that the other person has not seen it, since they probably received a notification on their mobile that they had a new message. It’s also possible that the other person took a screenshot of the message you deleted.
Sharlene Meriel is an avid gamer with a knack for technology. He has been writing about the latest technologies for the past 5 years. His contribution in technology journalism has been noteworthy. He is also a day trader with interest in the Forex market.
