The murky world of self-destructing messages, otherwise known as “unsendable” or “one-time-use” messages, is not a new phenomenon in the digital age. How communications methods have advanced in recent years has led to some interesting new opportunities for this type of привнот messaging. Social media platforms like Instagram and Facebook have taken steps to limit user content sharing but people still use these platforms for private sharing or sending self-destructive messages to break up with friends or lovers. In the past, popular messaging apps like Snapchat have been scrutinized for allowing users to send self-destructing messages but at the same time violating freedom of speech laws by deleting user messages. But with all this focus on the unsendable nature of certain messaging applications, it’s easy to forget that there are still other types of unsendable messages out there and politicians have taken advantage of these tiny windows of opportunity.
Unsendable messages and law enforcement
Self-destructing text messages are not immune to law enforcement. In fact, law enforcement agencies have gotten pretty good at saving and storing unsent or deleted text messages from phones. The most common way for law enforcement to recover these unsendable text messages is through the use of forensic computer experts who are trained in recovering deleted information from cell phones. Computer forensics differs from regular computer science because it is taught to law enforcement officers and crime scene investigators. This branch of science works by identifying and recovering possible evidence from computers, hard drives, mobile devices, etc.
Not only does self-destructing messaging technology provide evidence for computer forensics experts to recover, but it can also give valuable leads to law enforcement agencies. For example, a cyberstalker will often leave threatening messages on a victim’s phone. However after the stalker has received the appropriate notification that the message was sent, they may delete the text and try to avoid the intended recipient. But the forensic computer experts may be able to recover the initial message and even identify where it was sent from.
If you are receiving threatening messages from an unknown individual and want to report it, you can submit your information and details about the situation to stalker@usdoj.gov.
The simple fact that so many unsendable messages have been recovered in connection with criminal acts is one reason why the laws surrounding self-destructing messaging have become more strict. This is true in both criminal and civil cases.
Receiving unsendable texts can be a long-lasting problem because many people do not realize that they are being followed by stalker and they may simply delete the message without realizing that it was sent by a stalker. But if you have ever received a message like this, you may have been the victim of an unknown stalker who is using unsendable messages to follow you around.
