Whether you just want to browse the social media platform in peace or you're trying to take a break from instant messaging to get some work done — we all know how distracting the internet can be — signing out of the Facebook Messenger app on your iPhone is a bit tricky and isn't necessarily straightforward.
Here's how to do it on a desktop computer, and through the Facebook or Messenger mobile apps on iPhone.
How to log out of Facebook Messenger on iPhone on desktop
1. In your internet browser, go to Facebook.com and sign into your account.
2. In the upper right-hand corner of your screen, click on the downward facing arrow to reveal a list of menu options. Look for "Settings" at the bottom and click on it.
3. On the "Settings" screen, click on "Security and Login" on the menu on the left side of your screen. It should be the second option down from the top, just under "General."
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Pocket-lint(Pocket-lint) - Despite people's general distrust of all things Facebook after the Cambridge Analytica scandal, Messenger continues to be immensely popular. It's not without its issues though. You've probably seen people online when they aren't or have experienced that problem yourself.
Messenger can sometimes cause drama by showing you as online when you actually aren't. Not ideal if you're meant to be working or if friends and family see you as online and think you're ignoring your messages.
Alternatively, if you've found you're still logged into Facebook Messenger on a device you no longer own, you may want to log out of that device remotely to prevent unwanted access.
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In the settings for active status you'll see a note about this feature which reads:
"Your friend and connections can see when you are active or have recently been active on this profile. You can see this info about them too. To change this setting, turn it off whenever you're using Messenger or Facebook and your active status will no longer be shown."
To turn the active status off follow these steps:
- Open Messenger and click on your profile photo on the top left of the app
- Scroll down to the profile settings
- Click Active Status
- Click to turn it off
- Choose the time period you want it turned off for
You can choose to make this temporary by selecting a time period of an hour, eight hours, until the next day or a custom time period. Alternatively, you can use this to turn active status off until you turn it back on.
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How to log off Messenger on desktop
If you don't have your phone you can also log off Facebook Messenger on your desktop device too. The steps are similar so it's fairly straightforward. First click on your profile photo on the top right of the website then follow these steps:
- Click "Settings & Privacy"
- Click "Settings"
- Click "Security and login"
- Look for "where you're logged in" and then click see more
- Click the three dots against any device you need to and click "log out"
Again if you haven't already it's worth setting up and using two-factor authentication and a secure password here too if you're worried.
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How to hide your status on Messenger
As well as logging off, Facebook also gives you the chance to hide your active status on Messenger even to the point of editing it to hide your status to certain people.
To do this, head over to the Messenger website here. Click on your profile image in the top left and click on preferences, then click on "Active Status". You can then choose to turn it off or on entirely or to select people who can see your online status. So you can hide it to everyone except a select few or just turn it off for that troublesome friend who keeps wondering why you're online but not replying.