How to Make Your WhatsApp Messages Self-Destruct by Default

Dec. 10, 2021

Earlier last year, WhatsAppfinally introduced the option to send ephemeral messagesthat would automatically be deleted after 7 days. The Meta-owned messaging giant is nowrolling out a new updatethat adds more durations to the self-destruct timer (24 hours and 90 days). It also brings along anoption to set a default disappearing message timer for new WhatsApp chats, and that’s what we are going to discuss in this quick and short guide. So, let’s look at how you can make WhatsApp messages in new chats self-destruct by default.

As mentioned above, thedisappearing messages timer is applicable only for new chats. If you would like to turn on the feature for existing chats, you canfollow our guide on how to send disappearing messages on WhatsApp. With that out of the way, let’s get to the steps to configure the default disappearing messages timer to have WhatsApp chats self-destruct by default.

1. Open WhatsApp and tap the vertical three dots menu icon at the top-right corner. From the pop-up that appears, choose “Settings“.

2. From the WhatsApp settings page,tap “Account” and choose “Privacy”to review your privacy settings.

3. Under the “Disappearing messages” section on the next page, you will find the option toset the “Default message timer” for new chats. The available disappearing messages timer options are 24 hours, 7 days, and 90 days. All you have to do is select the appropriate timer based on how often you would prefer WhatsApp messages to self-destruct in the conversation window.

4. Once you have set the default messages timer, WhatsApp will display a banner in new chats to remind that you have enabled this feature. Tapping this banner takes you directly to WhatsApp’s disappearing messages settings page. If you change your mind or prefer adjusting the message expiry duration, you can do that without going through these steps.

While the new default message timer is mostly relevant for one-on-one chats, WhatsApp also enables the self-destruct timer preference for new groups. For example, if you set ’90 days’ as the default timer in settings, this duration will be the default option when you create a new group. Here’s how you can configure disappearing messages on new and existing groups:

2. For existing group chats, open the group info screen and you will see the option to configure the “Disappearing messages” setting. AsWhatsApp previously detailed, users can still choose to forward messages to other chats or quote the text as workarounds to retain the original message before they self-destruct.

Now that you know how to set up the new default disappearing messages timer in WhatsApp, you need to remember these things before using this feature to enhance your privacy. The feature isn’t as private as the messaging giant advertises it to be and has some gaping loopholes. To give you a better idea, we have listed the pros and cons of WhatsApp’s ephemeral messaging feature right here:

PROS:

CONS:

Set New WhatsApp Messages to Self-Destruct by Default

WhatsApp is not the only messaging platform that allows users to set a default message timer. In fact, the update comes just a few months after Signal added a similar feature to itssecure messaging app. If you haveswitched from WhatsApp to Signal, do not forget to check our linked guide onsending disappearing messages by default on Signal. And if you are looking for other niftyWhatsApp tips and tricks, check out this linked article to stay ahead of the curve. Any queries about the disappearing messages feature in WhatsApp? Do let us know in the comments below.

Subin writes about consumer tech, software, and security. He secretly misses the headphone jack while pretending he’s better off with the wireless freedom.