Use case
One-time chat links: a link that works exactly once
Most links you share stay valid forever, for anyone who has them. A one-time chat link works exactly once, and burning after that first use isn't a bug, it's the security model.
Get a one-time link
Get a one-time linkThe link is the security, not just the delivery
Most links people share day to day are durable by default: a Google Doc link, a Dropbox share, a group invite. Anyone who ever gets hold of them can open them, today or a year from now. That's a problem the moment the link is meant for exactly one person, because a forwarded screenshot, a shoulder-surfed message, or a compromised inbox turns "I sent this to you" into "anyone who's seen it can use it."
A one-time chat link is built on a different assumption: the link itself is the security boundary, not just the delivery mechanism. The instant someone opens it and claims the second seat in the room, the link is spent, no matter who opened it or how many other people have the URL sitting in a message thread.
That changes what a leak means. A leaked durable link is a risk for as long as the link lives. A leaked one-time link has a ceiling: one seat, in a room where nothing has been said yet, for ten minutes at most.
Generate, send, burn
- Generate the link
From an open room, request an invite. FadeChats creates a fresh one-time link tied to that specific room.
- Send it once
Share it over whichever channel is fastest: text, email, a group chat. It's a plain URL; nothing about it requires a special app to open.
- It's consumed on first open
Whoever opens it first takes the second seat. From then on the URL opens nothing, for them or for anyone else.
How far a leaked link can reach
- Ten minutes, then nothing
An unopened link expires on its own after 10 minutes. A URL left in an old thread or an inbox stops being a way in long before anyone thinks to look for it.
- A new link voids the old one
Each room holds one live invite at a time. Sent it to the wrong chat? Generate another while the second seat is still empty, and the misdirected copy opens nothing.
- Two seats, then the door shuts
Once the second seat is taken, the room stops issuing invites altogether, yours included. Nobody can be added to a conversation that's already under way.
Look at the second seat before you say anything
Opening the link reveals nothing, because nothing has been said yet: messages only start once you're both in the room. That's what keeps a leak bounded. If the link escaped through a forwarded screenshot or a shared device and someone else got there first, what you see is a stranger in the second seat of an empty room. Open with something only your recipient would know. If the answer is wrong, leave and start a new room with a fresh link; the stranger keeps a seat in a conversation that never happened.
Frequently asked questions
What if I click my own link by mistake?
In the same browser you created the room in, FadeChats recognises you as the host and reconnects you without consuming the invite, so the link stays valid for your recipient. From a different browser or device it can't make that connection: the invite is spent and your other device takes the second seat. Start a new room and send a fresh link from there.
My friend says the link doesn't work. What happened?
Usually the clock: an unopened link expires after 10 minutes. It's also spent if they already opened it on another device, which now holds the seat. If your room's second seat is still empty, generate a new link and send that one. If someone you don't recognise is sitting in it, leave and start a fresh room.
What happens to the chat once the link is used?
The link only opens the door. Your messages, images, GIFs and stickers travel peer-to-peer between the two browsers and are never stored on a server. The room closes on its own after 10 minutes without activity, and there's nothing left to reopen.
Is the link itself a secret?
Yes, treat it exactly like the secret it unlocks. Anyone who opens it before your intended recipient claims their spot in the room, so send it over the least-bad channel you have rather than somewhere it could sit around unattended.