“We heard your feedback and have started testing a new feature that lets you turn read receipts off in your DMs. Soon, people will be able to choose when to let others see when they’ve read their messages,” Mosseri said.

The feature is currently being tested, although they did not disclose information about a potential roll out. They also did not share whether users will have to turn off receipts for each person or if there will be an overarching option available.

Instagram confirms they are testing the ability to turn off read receipts for DMs. pic.twitter.com/sineEuCOob

— Pop Base (@PopBase) November 7, 2023

Mosseri shared a screenshot showing what the feature would look like. It would be accessible through the Privacy and Safety tab by clicking on a person’s name from inside the chat. From there, a section will appear entitled “Who can see your activity.” Users can then switch the toggle below and all views would become private. Direct messages sent with the vanish mode will still have read receipts, according to Engadget. 

Turning off read receipts is an option on multiple messaging apps such as Apple’s iMessage and Meta’s WhatsApp, which has given users this option since 2014. Read receipts currently remain unchanged on Facebook’s Messenger.