Messages

Thanks for posting in the Apple Support Communities deidre140,

We see you have some questions regarding deleting and recovering messages on your iPhone. The guide below will show you how it works.

Delete and recover messages on your iPhone or iPad

We hope this helps.

Cheers!

Greetings deidre140, 

Since it is not possible to remove “Show Recently Deleted”, leave your feedback using the following link. This way, your voice can be heard. 

Product Feedback - Apple

Best wishes.

Hi deidre140,

Recently deleted is a feature available in iOS 16. If you're not already updated use these steps to update:

1. Back up your device using iCloud or your computer.

2. Plug your device into power and connect to the internet with Wi-Fi.

3. Go to Settings > General, then tap Software Update.

4. Choose the software update that you want to install. You can choose to stay on iOS or iPadOS 15 and still get important security updates. Or you can choose the option to upgrade to iOS or iPadOS 16.

5. Tap Install Now. If you see Download and Install instead, tap it to download the update, enter your passcode, then tap Install Now. If you don't know your passcode, learn what to do.

See more about updating here: Update your iPhone or iPad - Apple Support

Thanks.