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Facebook Messenger to STOP working for millions of Brits – here’s how to check if you’re affected READ MORE: Facebook users in Britain will now have to PAY £3.99/month By WILIAM HUNTER, SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY REPORTER Published: 16:50 BST, 20 October 2025 | Updated: 16:53 BST, 20 October 2025 It is the popular messaging service used by millions of people around the country. But Facebook Messenger is soon due to stop working for millions of Britons. Meta, the owners of Facebook and WhatsApp, has announced plans to 'deprecate' the Messenger desktop app. That means anyone using the Messenger app for Windows or Mac will soon be locked out of their chats. In a Help Centre post, Meta quietly announced that it will no longer be possible to use the desktop app from December 15. Users will receive a pop-up notification 60 days before the app vanishes for good, giving you time to find an alternative. However, Meta says anyone still using the desktop app risks losing their entire chat history if they don't 'take the necessary steps'. So, here's how to make sure you don't lose all those precious group chat memories. Facebook Messenger is about to stop working for millions of Britons, here's how to find out if your account will be affected (stock image) Meta, Facebook's parent company, has announced that it will be 'deprecating' the Messenger app for desktop on Windows and Mac (pictured) How to save your chat history before the Messenger desktop app is axed Open the Messenger desktop app on your computer. Go to settings by clicking on the cog icon above your profile picture. Select 'Privacy & Safety'. Select the tab marked 'End-To-End' Click 'Message Storage'. From there, turn on secure storage and set up a pin to retrieve your chat history. When you open Facebook on the browser, you can use your pin to recover your chat history. Advertisement If you use Facebook Messenger on your mobile or on your browser, those versions won't be affected so there is no need to worry. The upcoming changes will only affect the downloadable desktop app for Windows and Mac. Meta says: 'If you’re using the Messenger desktop apps, you’ll get an in-app notification once the deprecation process begins. 'You will have 60 days to use the Mac Messenger app before it is fully deprecated.' Once that grace period is up, users will be completely blocked from using the app and Meta is advising users to delete the unusable programme from their computers. From December 15, anyone trying to access Messenger on desktop will be redirected to Facebook.com to sign in. If you've been using Messenger without a Facebook account, you will be redirected to Messenger.com where you will be able to sign in without needing to create a Facebook account. To avoid having your messaging history deleted when the app shuts down, you need to make sure that secure storage is turned on and set up a pin from the desktop app. The Messenger app for mobile (pictured) will not be affected, but desktop app users will need to 'take the necessary steps' to ensure they can still access their chat history from mobile Luckily, this process should only take a few seconds. From the desktop app, go to Settings by clicking on the cog icon above your profile photo. Select 'Privacy & Safety', click on the tab marked 'End-To-End Encrypted Chats' and choose 'Message Storage'. From there you will be able to see the option to turn on secure storage and set up a pin to retrieve your chat history. Meta says: 'Once you transition to Facebook.com, your chat history will be available on all platforms.' However, Meta's decision to axe the beloved app has sparked outrage on social media. On X, one outraged tech fan wrote: 'That's truly the only way I can keep in touch with people, I HATE going on the web.' Another chimed in: 'I see Facebook is doing away with the Messenger app. Or as I call it "literally the only good thing left about Facebook."' The announcement has sparked outrage on social media from fans of the app, who claimed to 'hate' using the browser version One user jokingly complained that the desktop app was 'literally the only good thing left about Facebook' On commenter on X called the decision a 'huge mistake', and said that it would be 'just another reason to move somewhere else' for their messaging needs While one commenter added: 'I think @Meta discontinuing the Messenger app for windows is a huge mistake. Instagram has made a subtle change that has left users FURIOUS 'I am finding less and less reasons to use Facebook and this is just another reason to move somewhere else,' Meta estimates that more than three billion people around the world use Facebook at least once per month. Although the majority of these will be using the mobile app or browser, many will be affected by the shutdown of the desktop app. Meta has been contacted for comment. BEST WHATSAPP ALTERNATIVES If you're considering deleting WhatsApp, you'll be happy to hear that there are several alternative apps to choose from: 1. Telegram With more than 400 million users, Telegram is one of the most popular WhatsApp alternatives. While it looks very similar to WhatsApp, what sets it apart is the fact that it gives the option to set messages to self-destruct after a given period of time, leaving no trace. Telegram also offers end-to-end encryption. However, as a WhatsApp spokesperson pointed out, Telegram 'does not offer end-to-end encryption by default so it’s not necessarily more secure than WhatsApp'. Signal is one of the most secure messaging apps, thanks to the fact that it is open-source. This means that the code for the app is publicly available to view, making it near-impossible for the app's creators to sneak in any backdoors that could allow governments or hackers to spy on your messages. 3. iMessage If you use an iPhone, you may consider simply switching to iMessage, Apple's own messaging app. The app has a number of impressive features included no character limits, the ability to send pictures and videos, and of course Apple's animated emoji feature, Animoji. Unfortunately, iMessage is only available for iPhone users, so you'll struggle to interact with anyone using an Android. 4. Google Messages Google's answer to iMessage is Google Messages, an Android-only messaging service. The app replaces your standard SMS app, and integrates with all of Google's apps and services, making it easy to share images or use Google Assistant. 5. Facebook Messenger If you were put off using WhatsApp due to its sharing of data with Facebook, Facebook Messenger may not be the best option for you. However, the app offers a number of helpful features, including games, secret conversations and video calls. MetaWhatsapp Share or comment on this article: Facebook Messenger to STOP working for millions of Brits - here's how to check if you're affected Add comment