Social media messaging systems have multiplied the options of having a private conversation in a thousand different ways. One of the options for chatting is Instagram direct messages, a system that has the classic message received and message read sign. But can this feature be disabled? Is it possible to read messages and maintain the conversation without any extra information?
Leave unread messages on Instagram
There are times when you prefer that the other person not know that you have read a message. It is something that can be done on WhatsApp, deactivating the double blue check, and it is something that can also be defined on Instagram. The key is in the privacy settings of the application, since this is where we can define if we want someone not to know if we have read their messages or if we directly prefer that no one knows about our readings.
How to hide the “read” message from a contact or an Instagram group
So that a contact or a specific Instagram group cannot know if you have read their private message, you will only have to follow the following steps to configure the option correctly.
- Enter the direct message conversation that you have open with your contact or group of contacts (if you have not started a conversation yet, press the Send message button on the main page of their profile).
- Once inside the sending message interface, click on the username (if you click on the photo it will take you to a different menu) that appears at the top to access the messaging settings.
- In this menu you can define the wallpaper that the messaging window with this contact will have, and also some privacy settings, which are the ones that interest us.
- Click on “Privacy and Security”
- And there you will find the “Read confirmations” option, which will be the one that leaves the “Read” message when you read the messages you receive from this person. Disable it if you want them not to know when you have read the message.
How to prevent anyone from knowing if you have read a private Instagram message
If instead of maintaining that privacy in a specific contact or group, you prefer that no one be able to know if you have read a message, then you should deactivate the “Read receipts” option in general. This is what you have to do.
- In the main Instagram window, click on your profile photo in the lower right corner.
- You will arrive at your profile page, and there click on the three stripes icon that appears in the upper right corner.
- Scroll down to the “How others can interact with you” section
- Click on the option “Messages and responses to stories”
- Select the Show read receipts option
- Disable the “Read receipts” option.
All messages you receive will return the status of received message, but at no time will it appear that you have read said message.