iPhone users warned over hidden detail when changing iMessage chat backgrounds
Apple fans are highly anticipating the release of iOS 27 expected to drop next month, with a host of new features due to become available.
However, there is one feature that was released last year along with iOS 26 that now has people talking.
The previous operating system update came with an addition that had long only been enjoyed by Android users but was finally being made available for the iPhone.
The feature in question is the ability to customize the background of your message chats, with Apple users now able to either select an option already available or to choose an image from their camera roll to set as the background.
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However, this comes with a major catch, because it turns out that the other person in the chat will also automatically have their background changed to the same image.
This came as a shock to many, with some people taking to social media to share their own thoughts on the matter.
On Reddit, one user wrote: “Am I the only one who didn’t know this would happen? Changing the background in an iMessage chat on my phone changed it on the other person’s phone as well.”
They went on to say: “Finally got around to updating my phone and exploring different features. Clicked on ‘backgrounds’ in iMessages and was thrilled to see I could customize each chat. I went ahead and did that to a few of my pinned chats and was shocked when I received a screenshot from someone this morning of their screen with the picture I chose as the background as their background as well.
How to change your iMessage background
If you want to change the image display on your iMessage background then all you need to do is open the Messages app and select the chat you want to customize.
From there, click on the contact information located at the top of the screen and click on Backgrounds. This will take you to a page where you can select either a preset background chosen by Apple or customize with an image in your camera roll.
“I briefly Googled the feature and didn’t see it mentioned anywhere that this would happen. Thank God I found out before I got to the people that I don’t like very much. That would have been messy. I don’t think this is a very well thought out feature.”
This prompted others to reply, with one saying: “Why on earth would I EVER want someone else's background behind a conversation on MY phone unless I specifically choose that?”
Another wrote: “Yeah I didn’t realise. I changed the bg to a nice photo of my mate, and the next day they texted me in confusion asking why their own face was staring at them in our iMessage chat.”
And a third added: “It’s just another stupid design choice in iOS 26. You can have chat wallpaper wars with your contacts. Back in the day, if something changed the background on your computer without your permission, it was called a virus.”