Sometimes you may send a LinkedIn message and then realize you want to delete it before the recipient reads it. LinkedIn does not have an undo send or recall feature for messages, but there are a couple of ways you can delete a message before the other person views it.
Why Would You Want to Delete a LinkedIn Message?
Here are some common reasons you may want to delete a LinkedIn message before it’s read:
- You sent it to the wrong person
- You included incorrect or embarrassing information
- You decided you wanted to reword the message before sending
- You no longer need or want to send the message
Whatever the reason, deleting the message can help prevent miscommunication or awkward situations.
Can You Delete a LinkedIn Message After Sending It?
Unfortunately, LinkedIn does not have a built-in feature that allows you to recall or delete a message after you’ve sent it. Once you send a message, it’s out of your hands.
However, there are a couple of workaround methods you can use to effectively “delete” a message by preventing the recipient from seeing it.
Method 1: Block the Recipient
The fastest way to prevent someone from reading your message is to block them. Here’s how:
- Go to their LinkedIn profile page
- Click the “More” icon (the three dots) next to the “Message” button
- Select “Block or report”
- Choose “Block” to confirm
Once you block someone, any messages you’ve recently sent them will be automatically removed from their inbox. They’ll get a notice that you’ve blocked them, but won’t be able to view the message contents.
Blocking is effective if you only need to delete one particular message from one recipient. However, it can damage your relationship with that person, so use it judiciously.
Method 2: Delete Your LinkedIn Account
If you need to delete multiple messages sent to different people, blocking each recipient isn’t practical. In that case, a more thorough option is to delete your LinkedIn account altogether.
Here is the process to permanently delete your account:
- Click your profile photo in the top right
- Select “Settings & Privacy”
- Click “Account preferences” in the left sidebar
- Scroll down and click “Close your account” at the bottom
- Select “Continue” to confirm
LinkedIn notes it can take up to 24 hours for your account to be permanently deleted. Once it’s removed, all your messages will also be erased from recipients’ inboxes without leaving a notification.
Of course, this also means you lose access to your entire LinkedIn account. So only use this method if you really need to erase multiple or highly sensitive messages that could have serious consequences.
Can the Recipient Still See the Message?
If you act quickly enough, blocking or deleting your account should remove the message before the recipient has a chance to see it. However, there are a couple of scenarios where they could still view it:
- If they already opened or read the message before you deleted it
- If they have email notifications enabled for LinkedIn messages, and the message was emailed to them
So there’s still a chance they saw the message if you weren’t fast enough. But in most cases, if you delete your account or block them within a few minutes, the message will be erased before they read it.
How to Prevent This Issue in the Future
Having to delete sent messages can be inconvenient and risky. Here are some tips to avoid needing to do this again:
- Double check recipients before hitting send. Make sure you don’t misaddress anything sensitive.
- Read over each message before sending. Look for mistakes or content you may regret.
- Wait a few minutes before sending emotional messages. Take time to ensure you want to send it.
- Consider writing the message in a separate document first. You can edit it safely before copying into LinkedIn.
Taking that extra minute can prevent the need to delete messages. But if you do need to remove something, the options above can help minimize the damage.
Can You Delete a LinkedIn Message on Mobile?
The methods for deleting a sent LinkedIn message work the same whether you’re on mobile or desktop.
On the mobile app:
- Go to the recipient’s profile, tap the “…” icon, and select “Block” to block them
- Or go to “Account” in your profile, then “Close account” to delete your account
The processes are simplified on mobile compared to desktop, but achieve the same result of removing your message. The steps may vary slightly between iOS and Android devices, but the apps make it easy to block connections or close your account just like the website.
Do Deleted LinkedIn Messages Still Show as “Sent”?
When you send a message in LinkedIn, it displays in your “Sent” folder to provide a record. If you then delete the message using one of the methods above, what happens in your Sent folder?
The message will remain in your Sent items for up to 24 hours until your account or the block takes effect. During this time, the message is visible to you but not the recipient.
Once the deletion fully processes, the message disappears from your Sent folder as well. So you can know for certain the message was erased if it’s no longer in your outbox.
Conclusion
While LinkedIn doesn’t allow retracting messages, you can effectively “unsend” them by quickly blocking the recipient or deleting your account. This prevents the contact from seeing the contents of the message.
Keep in mind these methods also remove all your other messages, disrupt your connections, or erase your profile entirely. So only use them for truly sensitive situations where needed. With care, however, they can let you pull back an errant message.
Other Frequently Asked Questions
Can you delete a LinkedIn message that has already been read?
Unfortunately, there is no way to delete a LinkedIn message after the recipient has already read it. Once they’ve seen the message in their inbox, they will continue having access to it. Even if you block the person or delete your account afterwards, it does not remove messages they’ve already read.
What happens when you block someone on LinkedIn?
When you block a LinkedIn connection, any messages you’ve recently sent them are automatically deleted from their inbox. They’ll get a notice that you’ve blocked them but won’t be able to view the contents of any messages. Existing connections are also severed and all your profile activity is hidden from that person.
Is it possible to retrieve a deleted LinkedIn message?
No, there is no way to recover the contents of a message after deleting it from LinkedIn by blocking or closing your account. The message contents are permanently erased from the system. However, the recipient may have retained a copy if they downloaded it before you deleted it.
Can you tell if someone has blocked you on LinkedIn?
If you try to send a message to someone who has blocked you on LinkedIn, you’ll get an error saying “This member’s settings don’t allow messages right now.” You won’t get any explicit notice that you’ve been blocked. But if you can no longer message them and your connections disappear, they’ve likely blocked you.
What happens when you delete your LinkedIn account?
Deleting your LinkedIn account immediately hides your profile and removes you from your connections’ networks. Any incoming messages are deleted from recipients’ inboxes. After 24 hours, your account is permanently deleted including profile data, network, jobs, and content you’ve posted.
Summary
Here are some key points to remember about deleting LinkedIn messages:
- LinkedIn doesn’t have a message recall or unsend feature, but you can effectively delete recent messages
- Block recipients immediately to remove your message from their inbox
- Delete your account to erase multiple messages from multiple people
- Act quickly before the recipient reads the message
- Prevent issues by reviewing messages carefully before you hit send
While not ideal, blocking connections or deleting your profile can get you out of a bind if you need to erase an inappropriate or unintended message. Use these solutions cautiously but they do provide a way to “undo” sending messages on LinkedIn if absolutely necessary.
