Signal-desktop: Cannot manage (remove) members of contact list

[Dowwie]

• [x] I have searched open and closed issues for duplicates

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Bug description

Signal desktop automatically added people from my phone contact list to signal contact list. I do not want to use this feature. Further, I want to be able to remove contacts but cannot

Steps to reproduce

• using hyphens as bullet points
• list the steps
• that reproduce the bug

Actual result: Describe here what happens after you run the steps above (i.e. the buggy behaviour)
Expected result: Describe here what should happen after you run the steps above (i.e. what would be the correct behaviour)

Screenshots

Platform info

Operating System: My Operating System A
Browser: My Browser X.Y.Z
Signal version: Z.Y.Y

Link to debug log

[ghost]

_Restarting Signal_ from within the web application does nothing to resolve this. Same with clearing _Hosted App Data_ from within the browser.

Removing desktop client from Android application and then re-linking it will resolve any contact names not previously synced, but still does not remove unsubscribed groups, blocked contacts, or deleted (from the phone) contacts.

[thegrince]

Same for me. All my contacts who installed Signal on their smartphone show up.
I do not want to use Signal with many of them.
How can I "remove" them and how can I be "removed" from them ?
Many thanks.

[jonathanamorford]

This is a very important feature that needs to be added. Deleted contacts showing up can be problematic (old relationships, contact mistakes, etc.)

[riyapenn]

@ibleedbinari The support page may help you. The original request sounds like a customized Signal contact list which is different from syncing changes on your Signal Android contact list with the Signal Desktop contact list.

[jonathanamorford]

That does solve my problem and looks like it may solve @Zer0Nin3r 's issue as well. However, it would be much better if that process was available without having to remove the account manually and reinstall the desktop app.

[ghost]

A 'hide contact' feature could be added. In that way there wouldn't be a custom contact list.

[thenktor]

I'm having the same problem as @Zer0Nin3r

1. Started Signal Desktop for the first time and contacts got synced
2. Removed a contact from phone address book and synced Signal contacts on the phone. The removed contact also disappeared from Signal.
3. Synced contacts in Signal Desktop again, but the removed contact does not disappear.

Same problem with multi user chats: a removed chat does not disappear from Signal Desktop.

[john-light]

+1 I would also like to see a "hide contact" feature. Was just told by a friend that they have contacts saved in their address book just so they know to ignore certain phone calls or text messages, but they do not want to have to see the names of these people every time they open the Signal mobile or desktop app. Adding a button to "hide contact" and adding a section for "hidden contacts" in the app would help ameliorate this issue.

[kisstater]

Joining in with all of the above.
Have also had the issue of unwanted Signal Desktop contacts.
A remove or hide feature would be very welcome.

[jtarvainen]

I have the same problem. I removed a contact (who uses Signal) from my contacts on my Android phone. The change was reflected in the phone's Signal app, but not in Signal Desktop. I tried re-importing the contacts on Signal Desktop and restarting the program, to no avail, even after re-syncing the contacts on the phone using the instructions on the support page as suggested by @riyapenn. Only removing and re-installing Signal Desktop entirely worked. Please fix this.

[crbn60]

It seems to default to showing all the contacts from my phone (iOS) that may have had Signal accounts. But on the iOS app itself, none of those appear.

[Adalan]

I'm jumping this thread as well as I would love to be able to remove old conversations out of the desktop app (and have it accurately sync).

[Fancellu2]

What exactly stops Signal people from acting on this?

Its not exactly an exotic request.

[scottnonnenberg]

@Fancellu2 I think it's partly because this space is pretty muddled. The design of the overall system is such that our master list of contacts comes from your phone's contacts. So we'll always show people in your phone's contacts.

So that's the first message we try to get out there.

The few people who have fully deleted contacts on their phones and continue to have those contacts still show up are essentially drowned out by everyone else who needs that first message.

What's your situation?

[Fancellu2]

I delete contact from phone. Still on desktop. Forever. Lurking.

I simply want to be able to delete it properly.

Either have it respect deleted contacts on phone, or better yet, just let me delete it on the desktop.

If I create a group chat, similarly, that is there, forever. Undeleteable.

I'm not sure why this seems to be so hard to give the users what they want. (I've been in commercial IT 30 years as a developer)

[jamie-1970]

Even a "hide contact" feature would get the job done.

[oneEyedCharlie]

Will this ever be fixed? Is it Whisper's intent to keep this broken forever?

[scottnonnenberg]

Choose 'delete messages' for a given contact in Desktop, and it with be hidden on Desktop going forward, until you send or receive a message from that contact once more.

[Buffalonian]

February 2018 - still this feature is not corrected? It's so frustrating to not mirror my real life with this app - aka, remove them .. it's like the tattoo of your ex-girlfriend's name. Just sits there.. .in the contact window ... unable to be removed. It makes me not want to use the app. There is no visual privacy there, despite the pipe line.

[mcg]

@Buffalonian You can now select the contact you want to remove. Then the menu(3 dots) for the conversation and select Delete conversation. The contact will no longer be shown.

[piotrkolo]

Do I really need to delete all 30 empty conversations separately?