Text messages hang around after you delete them because of how the iPhone deletes data. When you delete some kinds of items from the iPhone, they aren't removed. Instead, they're marked for deletion by the operating system and hidden so they appear to be gone, but they're still on the phone.
An iPhone with iOS 16 or later saves messages you delete in the Recently Deleted folder for 30 days. You can restore the conversations you need in a few clicks. Older iOS versions don't have this feature. However, if you make backups (for example, iCloud), your SMS are saved there.
All of your deleted text messages can be found in the Messages app. To find your trashed messages, open Messages and tap the Filters option in the top left of your text threads. Here you can filter your text messages by known senders, unread messages and more. However, the option we want is Recently Deleted.
How long do deleted text messages stay in iCloud? Normally your deleted text messages will be kept for 30 days.
Note: Deleted messages remain in your Recently Deleted folder for up to 30 days, and you can recover them.
You can only recover messages and conversations that you deleted within the last 30 to 40 days. If you delete a message before you update to iOS 16, iPadOS 16, or later, you can't recover that message.
Myth: When you delete a text, it's gone.
You can recover it or delete it permanently right then and there. That also means anyone can see your deleted messages if they have your passcode. Here's the good news: Text messages you unsend do not appear in the recently deleted messages file.
In truth, when you delete something from your phone, it doesn't vanish instantly. The flash memory in mobile devices doesn't delete files until it needs to open up space for something new. It merely "deindexes" it, essentially forgetting where it is. It's still stored, but the phone doesn't know where or what it is.
Third-party data recovery software may help you recover that deleted text message. There's no shortage of third-party data recovery apps in the Play Store and on the web. Software solutions like Dr.Fone, PhoneRescure, and FonePaw claim to retrieve deleted text messages on your Android phone.
Choose the Message History setting you want to use: Forever – the messages do not automatically delete themselves (this is recommended for most users) 30 Days – all messages will be deleted after they're 30 days old. 1 Year – messages will be deleted if they're older than a year.
Using third-party applications, parents can view deleted messages. Many third-party parental control applications are available that allow you to recover and read the deleted messages. MobileSpy, Decipher text message, Mspy, etc., are some third-party applications that allow to recover and read deleted iMessages.
Conceal their cheating: The most common reason or the first suspicion that arises when people delete chat history is obviously cheating. So if your partner is two-timing you or has a casual fling going on, they are obviously going to clear their chats, messages and calls.
Police are law enforcement agencies that have the right to ask for any data for security purposes. Many people hide their information in terms of photos or text messages from the police. However, police can effortlessly recover deleted Photos/Text/WhatsApp messages and almost everything from iPhone/Android.
Files you delete from iCloud Drive are recoverable for 30 days, but you can remove deleted files before the 30-day time period is up. See Recover deleted files on iCloud.com and Permanently remove deleted files on iCloud.com. Note: Files in the Recently Deleted folder don't count toward your iCloud storage.
Police may obtain the iOS device containing the deleted photos through a search warrant, consent, or other legal means.
You can only recover the messages and conversations you've deleted within the last 30 to 40 days. If you delete a message before you update to iOS 16, iPadOS 16, or later, you can't recover that message.
For Android
Google Drive is one simple and effective way to recover deleted text messages on Android without a computer. But you can only recover via Google Drive if you have taken the time to back up your data in Google drive, including your text messages.
Select the “Delete for Everyone” option
In the options menu, tap the “Delete” or “Delete Message” button. This should open another menu, in which you will find the “Delete for Everyone” option.
Generally, your iPhone will keep all text messages and iMessages unless you delete them manually or make changes to the retention time. Apple offers users the option to keep text messages for the past 30 days, the past year, or permanently. You can go to Settings > Messages > Keep Messages to have a check.
All of the providers retained records of the date and time of the text message and the parties to the message for time periods ranging from sixty days to seven years. However, the majority of cellular service providers do not save the content of text messages at all.