Instagram has released the Vanish Mode feature to its global users. The Facebook-owned company has included the feature in the latest update for iOS and Android.
As the name implies, the feature lets users send messages that disappear automatically. Facebook Messenger first received the Vanish Mode last month in the US and several other countries. Back then, Facebook had announced that Instagram will get the feature soon.
Bridget Pujals, Messenger Product Manager, and Manik Singh, Instagram Product Manager had issued a statement. It reads, “Sometimes a message is just spontaneous — something you want to say in the moment without worrying about it sticking around.”
“That’s why we’re excited to introduce Vanish Mode on Messenger, which lets you send messages that disappear automatically. How it works is simple — messages disappear after they’re seen and you leave the chat.”
Vanish Mode, an optional feature that only connected users can use:
Explaining the new Vanish Mode for Instagram, Facebook said in an official blog post, “We designed Vanish Mode with safety and choice in mind, so you control your experience. Only people you’re connected to can use vanish mode with you in a chat.”
this new vanish mode on instagram usefull pic.twitter.com/nB9aanA9mY
— ((ｇｉｏ☻)) (@giosintrn) December 10, 2020
“Vanish Mode is also opt-in, so you choose whether to enter vanish mode with someone. If someone takes a screenshot of your chat while you’re using vanish mode, you’ll be notified. And as always, you can block someone and report a conversation if you feel unsafe.”
If a user reports a conversation that was created using the feature on Instagram, the disappearing messages will be included up to one hour after they disappear.
How to use Vanish Mode on Instagram:
To get the Vanish Mode, users must first update the Instagram app to the latest version. Thereafter, the feature will be present as an option with every chat that the user has with a connected person.
At the end of a chat, there will be a new notification that states, “Swipe up to turn on vanish mode”. Activating the feature will make all the read messages disappear once the user exits the chat. Users will not be able to see any of the older chats or media or even videos if they go back to a chat, they have activated the mode for.
So Instagram also launched ‘Vanish Mode’. A setting that you can turn on & messages after both parties see them, they disappear.
How do we feel about this? pic.twitter.com/VP46DQx3Sb
— Beyoncé Of Marketing✨ (@JunaeBrown) December 10, 2020
Switching off Vanish Mode is quite easy too. Users merely need to do go back to the chat that has the feature turned on, and swipe up from the bottom of the chat to turn off Vanish Mode. Users can also tap on the turn off the feature on top of the chat window.
At the time of initial activation, users will see a screen that explains key features. The information will include more details on blocking and reporting.
Is Facebook copying Twitter or Incognito Mode?
The Vanish Mode in Facebook Messenger and Instagram appears quite similar to Twitter Fleets. Tweets sent out through Fleets have a life of 24 hours, after which they are automatically deleted.
With the introduction of Vanish Mode, Instagram is all set to take head on with Snapchat.
Stories, Reels & now Vanish Mode; Instagram might end becoming the only social media app we all use. pic.twitter.com/Ms4mbQHFkr
— Vineet Sharma (@Vineet_Sir_) December 10, 2020
On the other hand, the complete disappearance of all messages, without leaving any trace of conversation, appears similar to the Incognito Mode that’s available in nearly every web browser. The feature deletes all the records of websites visited after the user closes the session.