Article updated on January 7, 2025 by Byothe
I have been using WhatsApp for several years and this instant messaging application has gradually replaced text messages on my phone. The reason for this change is simple: the existence of a read receipt that lets you know if your interlocutor(s) have received and/or read your message…
In fact, WhatsApp has visual indicators that allow you to know the status of your message at any time:
- a gray check mark: the message has been sent
- two gray check marks: the message has been received
- two blue check marks: the message has been read
But sometimes, for good or bad reasons, you need the person you're talking to to not be aware that you've read their message.
There are 2 solutions for this. The first is a radical solution that has existed since 2014 and consists of disabling read receipts in the application settings… it will apply to all messages. The 2nd solution is more subtle and will allow you to manage messages on a case-by-case basis.
Disable read receipt in settings
The most radical solution, it will allow you to deactivate all read confirmations... both yours and those of your interlocutors... It is therefore a fair solution, but which will deprive you of one of the big strengths of WhatsApp... knowing if your interlocutors have read your message.
- Open WhatsApp
- Go to Settings -> USER LOGIN -> Policy
- At the bottom of the screen, turn off the option Read confirmation
Please note that this option only works for 2-on-2 conversations… read receipts will still be present in group chats.
Disable read receipt for a specific message
So here, we're entering more into Sioux trickery mode... we're not going to deactivate the read confirmation, we're just going to try not to trigger it!
This solution is therefore practical if you want to consult the content of a specific message without sending a read confirmation... and to do this, you will have to prevent WhatsApp from sending the read confirmation by disconnecting your smartphone from any telephone or WiFi network.
The steps to follow are therefore as follows:
- Activate airplane mode on your phone to cut off all networks
- Open WhatsApp et read your message in peace
- Close WhatsApp and feel free to quit the app (it's always safer))
- Turn off airplane mode
And that's it... However, in order to avoid making a mistake, I advise you to test the trick before having to use it in real conditions... You never know!
If you have any other tips on WhatsApp or other applications, do not hesitate to share them with us so that we can share them with everyone!
