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Took me 3 hours to figure out Signal's disappearing messages were NOT turned on by default
I was having a sensitive conversation with a journalist about a protest we both went to last month. I ASSUMED disappearing messages were on because I set it up once in a group chat. Turns out each conversation has to be enabled separately. Three hours of looking through settings and help pages later, I finally found the toggle. That's THREE HOURS of my life I won't get back. Has anyone else had a similar moment where you THOUGHT you were encrypted but your settings were actually wide open?
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brooke714mo ago
Honestly three hours seems like a lot for this. It's like one setting per chat, tap the three dots, scroll down, flip the switch. I get that it's annoying to have to do it for each conversation but it's not exactly hidden in some developer menu or anything. And if you're having a sensitive chat with a journalist maybe double check the settings before you start typing your life story. People act like this is some massive betrayal by Signal but it's just a design choice that keeps things from exploding in your face if you accidentally turn it on for everything.
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lily3604mo ago
Has anyone else discovered that Signal's settings are way too granular? I spent a whole afternoon once thinking I had disappearing messages on for my medical chat group, only to realize I'd only set it for one specific conversation thread. What finally worked for me was going into each chat individually and turning it on from the three dots menu (top right corner). I also made a little checklist on my phone of all the chats I wanted protected, which sounds super dorky but honestly saved me from doing it again. The app really needs a "apply to all" button, you know?
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