Someone Else Viewing Instant Messages

Can anyone see previous Instant Messages or chat messages? In most cases, anyone who does not have access to your computer cannot see the messages, with the exceptions of the person you are chatting with and sometimes the chat host.

However, someone who uses your computer may be able to see your previous messages.

For starters, if you use chat rooms, your history pages may reveal the chat room conversation. Clean your history file if you want to protect yourself from being reviewed in this manner.

If you use an Instant Messaging system, like ICQ or Yahoo, check your preferences. You may find the messenger system automatically saves your chat files. You can delete the chat files and turn off this feature.