WhatsApp has introduced a new feature that lets you undo a majorly awkward move in the group chat. The popular messaging app now allows you to undo the “Delete for Me” option incase you’ve accidentally deleted a message for yourself when you really meant to delete it for everyone else.
The new feature is called “accidental delete,” and allows you just 5 seconds to reverse a sloppy “Delete for Me” button press, according to WABetaInfo which tracks WhatsApp features. Instead, you can delete the message for the whole chat whether it’s one-on-one or in a group chat.
Let’s say you typed an embarrassing typo, and want it erased from everyone’s memory. In a rush to delete it, users sometimes accidentally click on “Delete for Me” instead of “Delete for Everyone.” Therefore, the message disappears from their view, but stays right there for everyone else to ridicule.
The “accidental delete” feature will now help users avoid the shame that comes with messing up in a group chat setting, allowing them a brief window to undo their mistake. If users didn’t mean to delete the message at all, the message can also be retrieved without having to delete it for anyone.
The feature is now available on WhatsApp for Android and iOS once you upgrade to the latest version of the app.
WhatsApp first introduced the option to delete messages from chats in 2017 to avoid awkward mishaps in individual or group chats. The app recently increased the time available to delete a message from 7 minutes to more than two days, and now lets users correct the mistake of how they corrected their initial mistake all in the name of seamless social interaction online.