How to stop Photos from Messages saving iOS 15

This article teaches you how to see all photos shared with you in Messages in iOS 15. It also looks at what to do if you can't see the photos shared with you and how to disable them for privacy reasons.

How Do I See All the Photos Shared With Me in Messages in iOS 15?

In iOS 15, there are a few different ways to see all the photos shared with you by someone in Messages. Here's the quickest way to view the photos shared with someone.

1. Tap Messages.

2. Tap the name of the person you want to view.

3. Tap their contact name/photo.

4. Scroll down and tap Photos.

5. Tap See All to view the full photo history sharing history.

6. Tap on any of them to save them or send them elsewhere.

How to View Who Shared a Photo With You

If you've already saved the photo and want to check who shared the image with you, you can do so via Photos. Here's where to look.

1. Tap Photos.

2. Tap the photo in question.

3. Tap From .

4. A Messages window opens allowing you to reply directly to the person that sent the photo.

Why Cant I See All the Photos Shared With Me in Messages?

If you can't view any photos shared with you in the For Me folders, this may be because you have the feature disabled. Here's how to share photos across the Messages app and to your Photos app.

1. Tap Settings.

2. Scroll down and tap Messages.

3. Tap Shared with You.

4. Tap Automatic Sharing.

5. Choose to enable the setting for specific apps such as Music, TV, Safari, Photos, Podcasts, and News.

6. The Shared With You section will now feature within the Photos > For You app.

How to Hide Photos Shared With You in Messages in iOS 15

If you'd prefer to hide some content from your Shared with You section of the Photos app, it's possible to disable the setting for specific people that message you. Here's how to do so.

1. Tap Messages.

2. Long-press on the conversation you wish to hide photos from.

3. Tap Hide in Shared with You to hide the person from your Shared with You folder.

   This disables all content. You can't hide selected content.

Can You Share Content From Other Apps?

Using the Shared with You folder in Photos only works with iMessage and select Apple apps such as Safari, Podcasts, and TV. It doesn't work with third-party apps such as WhatsApp or Signal.

What to Know

• How do I find the photos shared with me on iCloud?

  If you're a non-iOS user and receive an invitation to view a public album on iCloud, use the shared iCloud URL to view the photos. If you're an iPhone user, accept the invitation to view the album in your email or tap the cloud icon > Accept in the Photos app. To view or create shared albums, make sure to turn on shared albums from Settings > Your_Name > iCloud > Photos > Shared Albums.

• Where are messages in an iOS backup?

  If you turn on Messages in iCloud, all messages automatically save to your account. To recover deleted iPhone messages on a new or restored device, go to Settings > Your_Name > iCloud and turn the toggle on next to Messages. If you've disabled Messages in iCloud and use iCloud Backup instead, you can use this backup to restore your iPhone and retrieve your message history.