If I delete a message in WhatsApp on my phone, will it also be deleted - briefly?
When you delete a message in WhatsApp on your phone, the message is removed from both your device and the recipient's device. However, if the message has already been delivered or read, it may still be visible in the notification center or through other means of access.
If I delete a message in WhatsApp on my phone, will it also be deleted - in detail?
When you delete a message in WhatsApp on your phone, the outcome depends on several factors. Firstly, let's clarify that deleting a message from your device removes it only from your local storage and does not automatically delete it from the recipients' devices or from WhatsApp servers. Here’s a detailed breakdown:
- Local Deletion: When you delete a message on your phone, it is removed from your device's local storage. This means that the message will no longer be visible in your chat history on that particular device. However, this action does not affect the message on other devices or platforms where the recipient has access to WhatsApp.
- Recipient’s Devices: The message you delete from your phone remains intact and visible on the recipient's device(s). This is because the deletion action only affects your local copy of the message, not the copies stored elsewhere. Therefore, if the recipient has not deleted the message on their end, they will still see it in their chat history.
- WhatsApp Servers: WhatsApp messages are typically stored on servers until they are delivered to the recipient's device. Once a message is successfully delivered and read (indicated by check marks), the server’s copy of that message may not be immediately deleted but rather archived or maintained for backup purposes. However, this does not mean that deleting a message from your phone will delete it from WhatsApp servers.
- Backup and Cloud Storage: If you have enabled backups on your device (such as iCloud for iOS devices or Google Drive for Android devices), deleted messages may still be present in the backup until the next scheduled backup overwrites them. Similarly, if the recipient has enabled cloud storage, their copies of the messages may also be stored there.
In summary, deleting a message on your phone does not automatically delete it from the recipients' devices or from WhatsApp servers. The message will remain visible to others unless they manually delete it from their end as well.