How to read whatsapp messages secretly
How to Secretly Read a WhatsApp Without the Sender Knowing
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Stop WhatsApp reporting read receipts until you're ready to reply to your messages
By Marie Black
Editor In Chief, Tech Advisor
WhatsApp makes it far too easy to tell when someone has read your message. It’s handy when you are the sender of the message, but less welcome when it’s the other way around. You can’t hide under the duvet and pretend it didn’t happen. The sender knows you’ve seen their message and that you haven’t replied.
WhatsApp messages are just one of many modern intrusions in this digital age that do not take into account what we’re doing or how we’re feeling when they arrive on our phones. Sometimes you might want a chance to think about what to say before replying, yet not appear rude by not doing so immediately.
But that’s difficult unless you can stop WhatsApp from telling the sender you’ve opened the app and read their message.
How does someone know when you’ve read their message on WhatsApp? The most obvious way is through the tick symbols that are displayed at the end of every WhatsApp message: one grey tick is sent; two grey ticks is delivered; two blue ticks is read.
To make matters worse, you can select any message and tap the three dots icon, followed by Info, to see the exact time the message was delivered and when it was read.
And then there’s Last seen: even if you get around the tick system and the timing issues, can you really explain being online 10 minutes ago and not having seen the message sent to you an hour ago?
Here’s how to get around some of those problems.
How to turn off WhatsApp read receipts
You can get around WhatsApp’s tick system the official way or the sneaky way.
The official way is best if you don’t want anyone ever knowing when you’ve read their messages, but you’ll need to accept that you also won’t be able to tell when they’ve read your messages.
The sneaky way is best if you’re wanting to achieve this on an ad hoc basis – perhaps it’s just the one person you’re avoiding, rather than the whole world.
The official way to disable WhatsApp read receipts
Launch WhatsApp, tap the three dots icon at the top right, then choose Settings.
Select Account > Privacy. Scroll down to and toggle off the option for Read receipts.
Note that this does not apply to group messages, though it is less obvious when you have read a message in these conversations because the two ticks won’t turn blue until everyone has seen the message. You can still check who has read messages you have sent within group conversations by selecting the message, tapping the three dots icon and choosing Info.
The sneaky way to get around WhatsApp read receipts
There are various ways to read WhatsApp messages without the app realising you have read them. Most of these are made possible by you never opening the app in the first place.
Here are some places you can read WhatsApp messages without opening them:
- In notification previews – at the top of your screen, in your notification menu, and even on your lock screen
- In the WhatsApp home screen widget
- On a connected smartwatch or fitness tracker that supports WhatsApp notifications
- While using your phone in Aeroplane mode – but only for as long as it stays offline
You can turn on high-priority notifications in Settings > Notifications. This will make the appear at the top of your screen when they arrive, and you can read them and then swipe them away without ever opening them.
Lock screen notifications are also possible when you go to Settings > Notifications and look for this option under Messages.
Blocking someone is a last resort, especially if you want to remain friends. You can achieve this by opening the conversation thread, tapping the three dots at the top and choosing More > Block. Don’t forget to unblock them later if you do go down this path.
For as long as they remain blocked they won’t know whether you’ve read their message, but there will be other clues to the fact they are blocked: your profile picture and status will disappear, none of their messages will appear to be delivered, and they won’t be able to call you.
The following ‘tips’ will not allow you to read WhatsApp messages without being seen:
- Marking messages as unread
- Deleting WhatsApp messages after you have read them (this isn’t Inspector Gadget)
How to turn off Last Seen
It’s no good turning off read receipts if your message sender can see that you’ve been on WhatsApp and haven’t bothered to read their message. In fact, it’s worse.
As with read receipts, this works both ways: you can’t see when they were last online if you don’t let them see when you were.
Launch WhatsApp, tap the three dots at the top right of the screen and choose Settings.
Select Account > Privacy, then select Last seen.
You can then choose who should see when you were last online: everyone, no-one or only your contacts.
It’s also possible now to control who can see whether you’re online or not in WhatsApp.
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Author: Marie Black, Editor In Chief
Marie is Editor in Chief of Tech Advisor and Macworld. A Journalism graduate from the London College of Printing, she's worked in tech media for more than 17 years, managing our English language, French and Spanish consumer editorial teams and leading on content strategy through Foundry's transition from print, to digital, to online - and beyond.
How to Secretly Read a WhatsApp Without the Sender Knowing
WhatsApp has one unique feature that allows the sender to acknowledge if the receiver has seen the WhatsApp message.
Ever wonder what does one check mark mean on WhatsApp? It only tells that the mobile sent the text, but it did not receive it on the other side. Whereas two blue check marks on WhatsApp on the chat confirm viewing the message.
But what if you accidentally opened the message and did not want to reply then and there? This instance may create misunderstanding in the sender's mind. It is where reading someone's chat in privacy gets handy.
Following are some foolproof tips and tricks to help you read messages in WhatsApp without the sender knowing.
Method 1: Disable last seen option
It is the official way to read WhatsApp messages while staying offline on Android and iPhone. When you disable the Last Seen and WhatsApp Read Receipts options, the sender will never know if you read any message.
Here is how to disable Last Seen and Read Receipt option:
- Step 1: Launch the latest version of WhatsApp.
- Step 2: On iPhone, see the lower right bar to find the Settings option. For Android, tap on three dots to open Settings.
- Step 3: Head to Account, the Privacy, and uncheck Read Receipt. Just do not forget to choose Nobody in the Last Seen setting.
With this option disabled, you will also be unable to see others' Last Seen statuses.
Method 2: Read directly from the notification panel
You can also read messages in WhatsApp from the notification panel and reply directly without troubling to open the app on both Android and iPhone.
But there is a limitation in this option. You can not see lengthy messages or view pictures, videos, documents, etc. The notification panel only shows a chunk of the text message.
Here is how you can read and reply directly:
- Step 1: Open the WhatsApp app.
- Step 2: Open Settings.
- Step 3: Scroll to see the Notification setting and enable Show Notification and Show Preview.
- Step 4: Exit the app.
- Step 5: Whenever someone sends you a message, it will appear on the notification panel to read and reply.
You may also be interested in WhatsApp hidden features 2022: 20 tricks for both Android and iPhone users
Method 3: Track someone's chat messages secretly
This trick is 100% invisible. KidsGuard is an app developed for Android and iPhone users that benefits from tracking someone's WhatsApp chat without letting others know about it. Let it be your partner or kid.
Besides tracking received, sent, or deleted messages, it also offers the facility to have live screenshots of the chat going on. Not only chats, but you can also track videos, images, documents from this app.
- Step 1: Register your account by entering your email and acquiring the license to enable the feature.
- Step 2: Download the KidsGuard app on the desired device via www.
installapk.net and configure the settings.
Also, save your phone data to computer by using a great tool that insures your information is saved and you can access and recover it anytime you like.
Method 4: Read from android WhatsApp widget
Another option to read WhatsApp messages secretly is to use an Android widget. Since it does not require opening the official WhatsApp, WhatsApp blue tick will not appear in the application. Add this widget to your home screen and see and read messages secretly.
But you can not view photos, videos, or documents here. You still need to open the official WhatsApp app. Another downside of this feature is you can not view all chats messages in the widget. The widget option only selects individual conversations to display on the home screen.
Here is how to read chats via a widget on an Android phone:
- Step 1: Press and hold anywhere on the home screen of Android mobile.
- Step 2: Find the widget option and tap on it.
- Step 3: Now search for the WhatsApp chat widget. Press and long-hold it to bring it to the home screen.
Method 5: Read messages with airplane mode turned on
There is a misconception among Android and iPhone users that you can read WhatsApp messages secretly by turning on airplane mode. But the bitter truth is that it merely delays the Read Receipt. Once you send the message via this trick and disable your airplane mode, it will send the Read Receipt to the receiver.
The only benefit of this trick is that it buys time to think about what reply is suitable for this message.
If you want to avail this trick, here is how to do it:
- Step 1: Once you receive the message, swipe down the notification panel and turn on airplane mode.
- Step 2: Now read the chat and turn back on the Airplane mode.
- Step 3: Once you turn it on, WhatsApp sends the Read Receipt message to the receiver.
Method 6: Read messages via iphone 3d touch
If you are an iPhone user, you can read WhatsApp messages secretly with the 3D Touch feature. It allows previewing the shorter chats. But the 3D Touch function is available on iPhone 6s or later versions.
It is how you can do it:
- Step 1: Launch WhatsApp but do not enter any chat.
- Step 2: Click and long-press chat you want to read.
- Step 3: A window will open to peek within the conversation without opening the message.
- Step 4: Just remember to click outside of the small window. Otherwise, you will enter the chat inbox and trigger Read Receipt.
Again, you can not preview long messages by using this option. You will have to open WhatsApp to view them.
Conclusion:
Reading WhatsApp messages in secrecy provides privacy to work without disturbance. Also, it buys you some time to think about what reply to give.
If you are busy working or sleeping after a tiring day, you may get annoyed by multiple notifications. It is a disappointing situation. So, in this case, enabling this option will offer some space away from people.
8 secret WhatsApp features that no one knows about
Disappearing messages
Messages that live for a few seconds after being opened are a feature of almost all modern instant messengers. But few people know that such a function is in Votsap. To send a disappearing message to the interlocutor, just hold down the icon with his name in the chat, select the "Messages" option and activate the "Temporary messages" function. After that, self-destructing messages will become available for sending, which will be deleted from the chat after reading. nine0004
Message read report
When the interlocutor opens a sent message, it is marked with two blue checkmarks, signaling the sender. To prevent the sender from knowing if the message has been delivered, this feature can be turned off.
The first and easiest way is the main application settings. Open WhatsApp and find the "Settings" section. Next, you need to go to "Account" and select "Privacy". It contains the "Read Receipts" option, which can be disabled for privacy. The main and, perhaps, the only drawback of this method is that it works both ways. The sender will also not be able to see read receipts from other users. nine0004
The second method is only available for Android and cannot be used for iOS. To hide read receipts, just install a special widget on your desktop. These widgets are available in PlayMarket - a small 4x2 cm window will allow you to view all dialogs and chats without actually opening them. In new versions of the widget, some messages can be deleted from WhatsApp directly from the main screen.
Download immediately: 8 reliable instant messengers that will replace Whatsapp, Facebook and Instagram with a new failure
How to read another person's messages without reading them
If the other person has sent several messages that you need to read incognito, do not rush to open them on your phone.
First, try turning off the Internet - all messages will be saved in the cache, and the lack of connection will not send a read report to the interlocutor. To avoid sending a report to the interlocutor after turning on the mobile network, you need to open the dialogue menu. To do this, hold the chat on the main screen and wait a second - after that, the "Mark as unread" option will appear. You can turn the Internet back on - the interlocutor will not suspect anything. nine0004
Hiding photos of contacts in WhatsApp
For a profile photo, you can not only get your account deleted, but also go to court if the image posted on the avatar violates the laws of any country. To avoid unnecessary problems, you can simply hide it from strangers. To do this, go to the application settings and open the "Account" - "Privacy" section, and move to the "Profile photo" item. By default, the profile picture is visible to everyone, but the setting can be changed to "No one" or "My contacts" - in the latter case, only friends will see the profile picture, but for security reasons it is better to hide it from everyone.
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Share location
Photo © Shutterstock
With this feature, WhatsApp can send the current location to the other party. To share your geolocation, open the dialog and click on the add content button as if you were uploading a photo or file. After that, in the list you need to select the type of data to be sent, but not a photo or video, but a place. The same function is available not only for individual interlocutors, but for the entire chat as a whole. nine0004
How to read deleted messages in WhatsApp
Reading deleted messages cannot be called a fully working way - there are only two methods that work only on Android. The first is setting up a notification log through a special widget. The WhatsApp widget on Android has an interesting feature - recording notifications. It can be activated in the display settings. Once activated, it will be able to record the text of all messages, even those that were first sent and then deleted. If the widget does not work, then there is a simpler way - download a third-party program from PlayMarket.
The WhatsRemoved+ program is installed "on top" of the messenger and requests access to messages and contacts. Next, you need to allow access to notifications and configure which programs WhatsRemoved + will study. The list includes Instagram, Facebook, and several other popular programs. Whether this method of reading messages is considered safe is unknown, so before installing it, you should think several times whether it is so important to read deleted messages from other users. nine0004
Refuse now: Why you need to urgently delete WhatsApp from your phone To set up this feature, open "Settings" and go to "Account". After that, you need to go to "Privacy" and disable the "I was (-s)" function. This option can be configured for all contacts and chats, or applied selectively so that certain people do not see when the user enters the application. nine0004
Listen to audio before sending
To listen to the recording, just swipe to minimize the app while holding down the record button before ending the audio.
If you deploy the application back, you can find that the message was saved and not sent anywhere - and it can be listened to, deleted and overwritten if necessary.
Check chats immediately: What words and pictures are banned on WhatsApp and how not to get jailed because of them
Sergey Andreev
Evgeny Zhukov
- Article
- Social networks and messengers
- Science and technology
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How to read WhatsApp messages incognito
Recently, we discussed with you the intricacies of using the very popular WhatsApp messenger, but today I would like to take a closer look at one not the most obvious function. WhatsApp by default "tells" the sender whether you have read the message. And some users don't like it. Now we will tell you how to bypass this limitation and read your WhatsApp messages in secret from everyone. nine0004
It is worth noting that in fact, in order to read messages in incognito mode, there are several ways at once.
Content
- 1 Disable WhatsApp delivery report
- 2 Enable toast notifications on the lock screen
- 3 Use high-severity notifications for WhatsApp messages
- 4 Read WhatsApp messages in the notification bar
- 5 Read WhatsApp messages in the widget Android
Disable WhatsApp delivery report
This is probably the easiest way. The catch here is that it works both ways: if you don't let others know when you've read their messages, then you won't be able to see when they've read yours. Everything is fair.
- Launch WhatsApp and tap the three dots in the top right corner of the screen
- Enter the Settings menu
- Select your account
- Go to the Privacy menu
- Move the switch next to "read report" to disable this feature.
Enable pop-up notifications on the lock screen
You can also view floating notifications for WhatsApp messages on the lock screen.
And if the messages are short, then you don’t even have to open anything. You can read them in the preview window.
- Launch WhatsApp and tap on the three dots in the upper right corner of the screen
- Enter the Settings menu
- Select Notifications
- Select Pop-up notifications
- Select the Only when screen is off option
Use high-severity notifications for WhatsApp messages
Same as pop-up notifications on the lock screen , high-priority notifications allow you to read a WhatsApp message without being noticed.
- Launch WhatsApp and tap the three dots in the top right corner of the screen
- Enter the "Settings" menu
- Select "Notifications"
- Turn on the switch next to "Use high priority notifications".
Read WhatsApp messages in the notification bar
Using an Android smartphone, you will be notified of new WhatsApp messages located in the notification bar at the top of the screen.
Instead of tapping on them to open the app, swipe down to read the message. Your message will not be marked as read. nine0004
Read WhatsApp messages in an Android widget
Almost all Android phones support widgets. If WhatsApp messenger is installed on your smartphone, then you will also find the WhatsApp screen widget in a special repository.
Touch and hold a WhatsApp widget to drag it to the home screen. Any incoming WhatsApp messages will be visible in this widget without having to launch the app and open them. And that means without options that your presence will be noticed. nine0004
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