Mark Zuckerberg Warns Facebook Users Not To Screenshot Chats

Mark Zuckerberg has issued a fresh warning to Facebook Messenger users, urging them to think twice before taking screenshots of their private conversations. His message has sparked widespread attention because it highlights a growing focus on privacy and user control across Meta’s platforms. Zuckerberg, who co founded Facebook with his college roommates at Harvard, is now the chairman, chief executive officer, and controlling shareholder of the larger parent company known as Meta Platform. His rise to fame, early challenges, and the dramatic beginning of Facebook were even portrayed in the well known film The Social Network.

Recently, Zuckerberg took to social media to remind users about a particular Messenger feature that keeps their conversations more private. Although he delivered it in a lighthearted tone, the message carried a very clear warning. Screenshots of disappearing messages will no longer go unnoticed. Users will now receive an automatic notification whenever someone captures an image of a chat that was meant to vanish.

This update connects back to a feature Meta introduced in 2020 known as Vanish Mode. Vanish Mode allowed users of Facebook Messenger and Instagram to send temporary messages that disappeared as soon as the recipient viewed them and left the chat. It was designed to give people the freedom to speak in the moment without worrying about long term privacy concerns. At the time of launch, the company explained that spontaneous conversations often need a more casual setting. Vanish Mode answered that need by removing the message once it had served its purpose.

Turning on Vanish Mode was simple. A person only had to swipe upward in an existing chat to activate it, and another upward swipe would return the chat to a standard format. It first debuted in the United States, then expanded to several countries within the European Union. Bridget Pujals, who served as Messenger Product Manager, and Manik Singh, who managed Instagram features, explained that the mode was built with safety and personal choice at the center. They wanted users to control how their conversations were stored and shared.

Although the feature once held a prominent place in Messenger, the Facebook Help Center now states that Vanish Mode is no longer supported. In its place, Meta is gradually introducing a different system called disappearing messages. These messages function in a similar spirit, but the rollout is happening slowly and may not appear for every user yet. Anyone who has access can find the setting by opening a chat, clicking the person’s name, and scrolling down to the section labeled Privacy and Support. There, the option for disappearing messages becomes visible.

Meta explains that this feature serves the same purpose as Vanish Mode but with improved structure. The description clearly warns users about the new screenshot alert. If someone takes a screenshot or begins a screen recording, an automatic notification will appear within the conversation. This aims to protect privacy by ensuring that users always know when their supposedly short lived messages are being preserved by someone else.

Zuckerberg himself demonstrated the new function through a playful interaction with his wife, Priscilla Chan. He shared a short conversation in which he made a light joke involving a supercomputer. Her response included a screenshot of the chat, and the notification appeared instantly. By posting this example to the public, Zuckerberg showed how the feature works and reminded users that private conversations carry new layers of protection.

With these changes, Meta continues working toward a future where privacy is easier to maintain, communication feels safer, and users have more control over their digital interactions.