“Shared with You” is an iOS feature that automatically extracts content—such as links, photos, Apple Music tracks, or Apple TV+ shows—sent to you via the Messages app and aggressively injects them into the corresponding native apps. For example, a web link sent by a friend will suddenly appear in a dedicated section on your Safari start page, or a photo will automatically populate into your main Photos library. While designed to resurface content, many users find this highly intrusive, leading to cluttered apps and the surfacing of private or distracting content outside the context of the original conversation.
This guide explains how to completely disable the “Shared with You” framework system-wide on an iPhone, ensuring content stays strictly within the Messages app where it belongs.
Disable Shared with You Integration
To stop the operating system from indexing Messages content and projecting it across other applications, you must disable the feature at the OS level.
- Unlock your iPhone and open the main Settings app.
- Scroll down and tap on Messages.
- Look for the section labeled Shared with You and tap on it.
- At the very top of this screen, you will see a master toggle switch labeled Automatic Sharing.
- Tap the switch to toggle it to the Off (grey) position.
Verify the Application Lockdown
Toggling this master switch immediately purges the indexed “Shared with You” metadata from all associated Apple applications. (Alternatively, you can leave the master switch on and selectively disable it for specific apps like Safari or Photos using the toggles below it, but the master switch guarantees total isolation).
To verify the lockdown is successful, open Safari and look at your Start Page; the “Shared with You” section will be completely gone. Next, open the Photos app, navigate to the “For You” tab, and verify that the “Shared with You” carousel has been eradicated. All links, media, and documents sent to you will now remain safely and exclusively quarantined within the individual threads of the Messages app.