How To Delete Messages on iPhone Permanently – Guide
Deleting messages on iPhones requires more than a simple swipe. Even if you delete them from your inbox, they may still appear in Spotlight search. To ensure embarrassing or secret messages are truly gone, users must take a multi-faceted approach to data management, as deleted texts, iMessages and multimedia messages may still be stored in the cloud.
To ensure your messages are permanently deleted from your iPhone, follow a few simple steps.
How to Delete text messages on your iPhone
Owning an iPhone can be made easier by deleting text to save space or erase sensitive material. Messages deleted in the normal way are now actually gone, unlike with earlier iOS versions where a Spotlight Search bug allowed them to be recovered. Those without backups or other Apple devices can rest assured that their messages are truly deleted.
Deleting entire conversations
Want to quickly and easily delete all your messages with someone? Here’s how:
Users of the popular messaging app can now “swipe left” to end a conversation.
Tap the “Delete” button and it will be activated.
Users can delete conversations from the main Messages screen, but doing so will leave the conversation empty.
Encouraging dialogue is essential for fostering understanding and collaboration.
Users can now access additional features by tapping and holding any message within the app.
Tap the “More” button when the options appear.
To delete a conversation, tap the “Delete All” button in the upper left corner, then confirm by selecting “Delete Conversation.”
Deleting individual messages
Users can now delete individual messages within a conversation thread, rather than having to delete the entire conversation. This process is similar to the second method of deleting conversations.
Encouraging dialogue is essential for fostering understanding and collaboration.
Press and hold the message to delete it.
Tap the “More” button when the options appear.
Tap the dots next to any other messages you want to delete.
To delete a message, tap the trash can icon in the lower left corner and confirm your action by selecting “Delete message”.
How to Delete text messages from your iPhone backup
To ensure your messages are permanently erased, you must check data that may not be stored on your iPhone – backups. Restoring an older backup could bring back deleted text messages, so it’s important to consider this before restoring your device.
It’s essential to keep an up-to-date backup and delete any unnecessary ones from iCloud or macOS, as hackers could gain access to them.
Deleting an iCloud backup containing old messages
Having an online backup of your information can be a lifesaver, but it can also contain sensitive or embarrassing text messages. To make sure these are removed for good, it’s easy to do on your iPhone.
To access the “General” settings, open the “Settings” app.
Tap the iCloud section, then select “Manage storage” to access your iCloud storage.
Choose a device to erase from the “Backups” list.
At the bottom of the page, click “Delete backup” to erase it.
Tap the “Shutdown & Delete” button to permanently remove the backup.
To keep your iPhone’s backup clean, macOS iCloud offers a way to do so. To take advantage of this feature, simply follow these steps.
To access System Preferences, click the Apple logo in the menu bar.
Tap “iCloud” and select “Manage” to access your account.
To access backups, left click on the “Backups” button.
Choose your iPhone from the list and click “Delete” to remove it.
Deleting an iTunes Backup Containing Old Messages
If you’ve backed up your iTunes library and it contains unwanted messages, here’s how to delete them: iCloud storage may not be enough to keep everything in the cloud, but you can still get rid of any unnecessary content.
To access iTunes Preferences, click the menu bar and select “iTunes.”
Navigate to the “Devices” tab to view a list of all devices that have been backed up on your computer.
To delete a backup, click the corresponding option.
To erase a backup, click the “Delete Backup” button in the lower right corner.
Users must click “Delete” and “OK” to exit the preferences, without a pop-up confirmation window.
Syncing Your iPhone with iTunes to Overwrite Old Backup
Deleting messages from your iPhone won’t be reflected in your iTunes backup until you sync with iTunes. To ensure the deleted messages are removed from the backup, syncing is necessary.
Connecting your iPhone to your computer and opening iTunes will automatically sync the device. If not, simply click the “Synchronize” or “Back Up Now” button on the iPhone Summary page. Doing so will delete any deleted text from the backup file.
Ensure your backup is secure by selecting the “Encrypt iPhone Backup” option. This adds an extra layer of protection, as a key is needed to access the message database in the backup file. Without encryption, this database can be easily viewed by anyone with access to it. However, please note that encryption requires a master password - if you forget it, you won’t be able to access your backup.
How to Delete handwritten messages on your iPhone
Adding a personal touch to your chats is now easier than ever with iOS’s new handwritten message feature. You can send animated messages via iMessage, as well as static images like regular SMS. But if you want to delete these messages, it’s not immediately clear how to do so. Here’s how:
Rotate your iPhone to landscape orientation and the handwriting screen will appear, displaying all of your previous handwritten messages.
Tap and hold an image to delete it. A “X” will appear above the image; click it to confirm deletion of the message.
How to Delete messages with a blank sheet
If you’re concerned about your deleted messages lingering on your iPhone, there’s a surefire way to get rid of them: “Erase all content and settings.” This will delete all data from your device, so make sure this is the route you want to take.
To access the “General” settings, open the “Settings” app.
To reset your device, scroll to the last screen and tap the “Reset” button.
To reset your device, tap “Clear all content and settings” and enter your password, if required.
To completely reset an iPhone, users must tap “Erase iPhone” twice.
To set up your iPhone, wait for it to clean and restart, then configure it as a new device.
Final note
We hope you found our guide on how to delete messages on iPhone permanently helpful. If you have any questions, please don’t hesitate to reach out. Show your support by sharing this article with your friends!
