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There's a secret inbox folder in Facebook Messenger - here's how to find out who's been trying to contact you

What messages are lurking in your secret inbox? Find out who's been trying to contact you on the social network


How to access the secret inbox in Facebook Messenger

The people you talk to on Facebook are usually those you have accepted as "friends", but from time to time a stranger will send you a message out of the blue.
Facebook has a "message request" feature, that sends you a notification
if someone you are not friends with tries to contact you.
But it turns out this isn't always the case. Facebook will only notify you if it "thinks" you might know the person. Anything else is filtered out as spam.
"But what if those 'spam' messages aren't actually spam?" I hear you cry.
GettyFacebook
Facebook
Fear not. It turns out there is a hidden folder in Facebook Messenger where all these sad, neglected messages end up.
Here's how to find it:
  1. Go into the Messenger app
  2. Tap on the Settings icon
  3. Tap on "People"
  4. Tap "Message Requests"
  5. Scroll to the bottom and tap "See filtered requests"
For the most part, the messages that appear in this hidden inbox are exactly what you'd expect - bland chat-up lines and links to porn videos.
However, when I checked mine, I found a message from a university student asking for help with her dissertation, and one from an old colleague asking to meet for a coffee.

Unread facebook message
Unread facebook message
I'd like to take this opportunity to apologise to both of you for never replying.
Follow the instructions above to find out what's lurking in your Facebook spam folder.
Facebook ditched the "other" inbox last year in favour of message requests, which allow you to accept or ignore new requests without the requester knowing whether you've read their message.
Facebook said at the time that it would "ruthlessly combat" spam messages, to stop them cropping up as requests in your inbox.

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