With a little intervention, any conversation within a note can “self-destruct” unlike text messages. You can send a reply to the other person by deleting it. Then, you can replace your reply with the deleted message. It is possible to have a very long conversation without having any evidence that it took place.

Here’s how to make a note on iOS into a place to have hidden conversations.

Make a note

Open the Notes app on your iPhone and tap the Create button at the bottom right. This will create a new Note. To keep the note, you must enter anything. Otherwise, it will be automatically deleted after you close the note. Although you can always go back to an existing note, it is better to start from scratch with a brand new one.

Modify the share options of the note

Once you have your note up and running, you can add another person to the collaboration list. This will allow them to read and edit the note. Tap the More icon at the top of the screen, then hit Send Note.

Tap Share Options. Make sure that the Can Make Changes option under Permission is selected. In case you wish to be the only person to add collaborators to your Note, toggle off Anyone can Add People. When you are done configuring these settings, go back to the previous page.

Add a colleague and share the link

Next, select a way to share the note. You can do this via email, text message, or social media. You can also swipe to select Copy link. This copies the note link to the clipboard and allows for you to paste it anywhere you like.

For example, I will choose the copy link option.

Enter the email address or telephone number of the person who will be able to access the copy link page at the top. To search your contacts, you can tap the Add icon. You must add a contact to your note. If you don’t add a contact, they won’t have the ability to edit or see the link.

Finally, click Copy link to save the note link to your clipboard. Share it with your colleague.

Use Notes to communicate secretly

Now, the other person must open the note link to accept the invitation. Accepting the invitation will send them to the Notes app, and the note you have just created.

Simply type in the message to communicate. The other person can see it immediately without you needing to hit the send button. You’ll receive an email notification whenever the note is modified.

Every person will see a color that corresponds to their note (only for a brief moment), so everyone knows who wrote what. To see the name of the person who wrote the message and the timestamp (for when it was written) as well as any corresponding colors, swipe to the middle of your note.

You can also tap on the Share Note button with the checkmark icon, go to Manage shared note then toggle on Highlight all changes. This will ensure that all messages are permanently highlighted in the appropriate color. It makes it easier to understand the conversation.

If you wish to keep your communication low-key, delete the message and the message of the other person to strike it out from the note. This will make your conversation more like Snapchat. You can send ephemeral messages or brief messages that are hidden from outsiders. This can be done with any text, photos, videos, or drawings that you attach to the note.

Permanently delete all secret conversations

It’s not possible to have secret conversations forever. So it’s time to end them.

You can make sure that everyone has access to the note if you are the owner. To view all participants, click the View Participants link and then click Manage shared note. You can remove a participant by either tapping on their name, then hitting Remove, or tap on their name to tap Remove Access.

You can also tap the Stop sharing option. This will remove all participants from the note and delete it from all their devices.

You can delete the note from Notes if you are not the note’s owner.