Symbols in Rasum – what do they mean?

This page explains every symbol you see in Rasum. The symbols are sorted by the place where they appear. Below the tables you find answers to the most common questions about individual symbols.

The colours in the app may differ slightly from the images here. The shape is the same.

Symbols below your own message (message status)

Below your own message, on the right, Rasum shows how far the message has got. There is no double check mark. The Message status page explains this in detail.

Symbol	Appearance	Meaning	What to do?
	small empty circle, grey	The message is being sent. It has not reached the server yet.	Wait a moment. If the circle stays for a long time, check your internet connection.
	small circle with check mark, grey	The message is sent. The server has accepted it. No one has read it yet. The check mark only appears on your newest message.	Nothing. Everything is fine.
small round profile pictures	up to three small profile pictures side by side, then “+” and a number	These people have read the message. The profile pictures replace the check mark.	Tap to see the list of all readers.
	red exclamation mark in a circle next to a red time	Sending failed. The message has not arrived.	Tap the red time and choose “Retry”. See Message is not sent.
no symbol	–	Older messages of yours normally have no symbol at all. This is not an error.	Nothing.

Symbols next to a message’s time (encryption)

A small symbol can appear next to the time in a message. It concerns the encryption of this one message. If the symbol is red, the time is red too. If you tap the time, the app explains what is going on. All texts are listed under Encryption notices.

Appearance	Meaning	What to do?
circle with a small “i”, grey or red	The authenticity of the message cannot be guaranteed on this device.	Usually harmless. Confirm your device if you have not done so yet.
question mark in a filled circle, grey or red	The message comes from a device or a person that is not confirmed, or from an unknown device.	Tap the time and read the text. If in doubt, ask the person in another way.
crossed-out lock, grey or red	The message is not encrypted.	Do not send confidential content in this chat.
circle with a small “i”, grey	iPhone: Someone else passed the key for this message on to you because you were not in the chat yet when it was sent.	Nothing.
red exclamation mark in a circle	Sending failed (see above). This symbol always takes priority.	Tap the red time.

Symbols and notices instead of the message text

Sometimes a message shows no text but a grey notice with a symbol. More under Encryption notices.

Appearance	Meaning	What to do?
clock with the text “Waiting for this message”	The key to read it is still missing. It may still arrive later.	Wait. Leave the app open. Check whether your device is confirmed.
crossed-out circle with grey text	The message permanently cannot be read on this device, for example “You don’t have access to this message”.	Read the text. Confirming the device or entering the recovery key often helps.
circle with exclamation mark and “Unable to decrypt message”	Android: The sender withheld the key. iPhone: Here the app shows the crossed-out circle instead.	Ask the sender to send the message again.
trash can with “Message removed”	This message was deleted.	Nothing. The content is gone for everyone.
filled circle with “i” and “Unsupported event”	Android: The app cannot display this content.	Nothing.

Other marks on messages

Symbol	Appearance	Meaning
Text “(edited)”	before the time	The message was changed after it was sent.
Line with “New”	horizontal line in the chat	The messages you have not read yet start here.
	pin next to the message	Android: The message is pinned (attached to the top of the chat).
Emoji with number	small capsule below the message	Reactions. The number says how many people reacted this way. Tapping adds or removes your own reaction.
	smiley with plus	Add a reaction.
Text “… is typing…”	at the bottom of the chat	The person is typing right now. Only appears if “Share presence” is turned on.

Symbols in the chat list

The chat list is the start screen with all chats. More under Chat list.

Symbol	Appearance	Meaning	What to do?
	clock before the last message	Your last message in this chat is still being sent. In the chat list this is a clock, in the chat itself an empty circle.	Wait a moment.
	red exclamation mark before the last message	Your last message was not sent. Android: Red text also says “Message failed to send”.	Open the chat and tap the red time.
Dot on the right	small round dot	There are new, unread messages. Rasum does not show a number. Android: Coloured dot = important for you, grey dot = less important.	Open the chat.
	@ sign on the right	Someone has mentioned you.	Open the chat.
	crossed-out bell on the right	The chat is muted. You do not get notifications.	Undo it in the chat info. See Manage a chat.
	phone handset on the right	A voice call is running in this chat right now.	Open the chat and join.
	video camera on the right	A video call is running in this chat right now.	Open the chat and join.
green dot on the profile picture	small green dot at the bottom right of the profile picture	The person is online right now. Only in direct chats.	Nothing.
	magnifying glass at the top right	Search chats by name.	Tap it and enter a name.
	three horizontal lines, getting shorter towards the bottom	Android: Filter by spaces. Only appears if you are in spaces.	Tap it and choose a space.
	speech bubble in the bar at the bottom, labelled “Chats”	Go to the chat list.	–
	three small circles in the bar at the bottom, labelled “Spaces”	Go to your spaces.	–
	pencil on a sheet in the bar at the bottom, labelled “Start chat”	Start a new chat or create a group.	See Start a new chat.

Symbols in a chat’s header

The header is the top edge of an open chat with the name and profile picture.

Symbol	Appearance	Meaning	What to do?
	video camera at the top right	Start a call. The symbol is always a camera, even for voice calls. After tapping it, you choose “Voice call” or “Video call”.	See Calls.
green dot on the profile picture	small green dot	The person is online right now. Only in direct chats.	Nothing.
	seal with check mark	The other person is confirmed (verified).	Nothing.
	iPhone: filled circle with “i”	The other person’s digital identity was reset.	Ask the person whether they did this themselves.
	Android: red exclamation mark in a circle	The other person’s confirmed digital identity has changed.	Ask the person whether they did this themselves.
	Android: clock with circular arrow	New members can see the previous message history.	Nothing.
	Android: person in a circle	Anyone can see the message history.	Do not write anything confidential in this chat.

In the chat info (tap the name at the top), Android also shows small badges:

Symbol	Appearance	Meaning
	closed lock, “Encrypted”	The chat is end-to-end encrypted.
	crossed-out lock, “Not encrypted”	The chat is not encrypted.
	globe, “Public room”	Anyone can join this chat.

iPhone: In encrypted chats, the chat info shows “Message encryption enabled”.

Symbols in the input bar

The input bar is the field at the bottom of the chat where you type. More under Write a message.

Symbol	Appearance	Meaning
	plus on the left	Opens the attachment menu: photos, files, GIFs, polls and more. See Photos, videos and files.
	microphone on the right	Record a voice message. Tapping once starts the recording. See Voice messages.
	filled square	Stop the recording.
	trash can	Discard the recorded voice message instead of sending it.
	Android: paper plane with colour gradient	Send the message.
	Android: check mark instead of paper plane	Send the edited message.
	X above the input field	Cancel a reply or an edit.
	iPhone: crossed-out lock with “Not encrypted” above the input field	This chat is not encrypted.

The attachment menu opens with the plus in the input bar.

Symbol	Entry	Meaning
	iPhone: “Camera” · Android: “Take photo”	Take a photo with the camera (or, on the iPhone, also a video) and send it.
	Android: “Record video”	Record a video and send it.
	“Photo & Video Library”	Send photos or videos from your gallery.
	“Attachment”	Send a file.
/	“GIF” (iPhone: image symbol, Android: sheet with folded corner)	Search for an animated image and send it. See GIFs and polls.
	“Poll”	Create a poll.
	“Text Formatting”	Tools to format your text.

When you long-press a message, a menu opens. Edit, delete and more explains the entries.

Symbol	Entry	Meaning
	“Reply”	Reply to this message.
	“Forward”	Send the message to another chat.
	“Edit”	Change your own message.
	“Copy link to message”	Copy a link to exactly this message.
/	“Pin” / “Unpin”	Attach the message to the top of the chat or remove it again.
	“Copy text”	Copy the text to the clipboard.
	iPhone: “Translate”	Translate the text with the iPhone’s translation feature.
	“Report content”	Report someone else’s message.
	iPhone: “Remove message” · Android: “Remove”	Delete the message for everyone.
	“End poll”	Close your own poll.

Symbols for calls

Symbol	Appearance	Meaning
	video camera at the top right of the chat	Start a call. Then choose “Voice call” or “Video call”.
	phone handset	“Voice call” in the call menu; in the chat list: a voice call is running.
	video camera	“Video call” in the call menu; in the chat list: a video call is running.
“Join” button	Android: coloured button at the top right instead of the camera	A call is running in this chat. Tap to take part.
	Android: hung-up handset, labelled “Reject”	Decline an incoming call.

iPhone: Incoming calls appear like a normal iPhone call. The iPhone announces every call as a video call, even if it is a voice call. After you answer, it starts correctly as a voice call. More under Calls.

Dots on profile pictures and entries

Indicator	Where	Meaning
green dot	at the bottom right of the profile picture, in the chat list and in the header of a direct chat	The person is online right now.
no green dot	–	The person is offline, or their status is unknown, or “Share presence” is turned off on your side.
dot on your own profile picture	Android: at the top left of the chat list	There is something to do in the settings, usually in encryption.
dot next to “Encryption”	in the settings	You should do something there, for example enter your recovery key. See Recovery key.

Connection indicators

Indicator	Meaning	What to do?
“Offline”	Your phone has no internet. Android: with a crossed-out cloud.	Check Wi-Fi or mobile data.
“Server unreachable”	You have internet, but rasum.chat is not responding right now.	Wait a little, try another network.
“Syncing” with a spinning circle	The app is fetching new messages.	Wait a moment.

What does the empty circle next to my message mean?

The empty circle below your message, on the right, means: the message is being sent right now. It has not reached the server yet. Usually the empty circle disappears after a few seconds. Then the circle with a check mark appears.

If the empty circle stays for a long time, the message is not getting through right now. Common reasons are a weak or missing internet connection. Check your connection or switch between Wi-Fi and mobile data. More under Message is not sent.

In the chat list, Rasum does not show a circle for a message that is still being sent, but a small clock clock .

What does the circle with a check mark mean?

The circle with a check mark circle with check mark means: the message is sent. The server has accepted it. No one has read it yet.

The circle with a check mark only appears on your newest message. As soon as someone has read the message, small profile pictures replace the check mark.

iPhone: The check mark also disappears as soon as someone else in the chat writes a new message.

Why does my older message have no symbol?

In Rasum, older messages of yours normally have no symbol. This is not an error. Rasum only shows the circle with a check mark on your newest own message. If a message has no symbol and is not red, it has been sent.

What do the small profile pictures below a message mean?

The small round profile pictures below a message show who has read up to this point. Rasum shows up to three profile pictures, then “+” and a number. Tap the profile pictures to see all readers.

The profile pictures only appear if “Share presence” is turned on for you. See Presence and read receipts.

Does Rasum have two check marks (double check mark)?

No, Rasum has no double check mark. The circle with a check mark means “sent”. Small profile pictures below the message mean “read”. There is no separate “delivered” state.

What does the red exclamation mark on my message mean?

The red exclamation mark red exclamation mark in a filled circle next to a red time means: sending failed. The message has not arrived.

Tap the red time.
Choose “Retry” to send the message again.
Or choose “Remove message” to discard it.

More under Message status.

What does the clock in the chat list mean?

The small clock clock before the last message in the chat list means: your last message in this chat is still being sent. In the open chat, the same message has the empty circle.

What does the clock with “Waiting for this message” mean?

The clock clock with the text “Waiting for this message” means: the message is there, but your device does not have the key to read it yet. Often the key arrives shortly afterwards, and the message becomes readable. If the notice stays, confirm your device or enter your recovery key. See Encryption notices.

What does the question mark next to the time mean?

The question mark in a circle question mark in a filled circle next to the time means: Rasum cannot say for sure which device the message comes from. For example, the sender’s device is not confirmed. Tap the time, and the app shows the exact reason. A red question mark is more serious than a grey one. See Encryption notices.

What does the i in a circle next to the time mean?

The “i” in a circle circle with small i next to the time usually means: “The authenticity of this encrypted message can’t be guaranteed on this device.” Tap the time to see the text.

What does the crossed-out lock mean?

The crossed-out lock means: not encrypted. Next to the time, it concerns a single message. Above the input field (iPhone) or in the chat info (Android), it concerns the whole chat. In that case, do not send confidential content.

What does the crossed-out circle mean?

The crossed-out circle on a grey notice means: this message cannot be read on this device. The text next to it gives the reason, for example “You don’t have access to this message”. See Encryption notices.

What does the green dot on the profile picture mean?

The green dot at the bottom right of the profile picture means: the person is online right now and has Rasum open. The green dot only appears in direct chats, not in groups. There is no “last seen” indicator.

You only see the green dot if “Share presence” is turned on for you. If it is off, you see no green dots. See Presence and read receipts.

What does the dot on the right in the chat list mean?

The dot to the right of a chat in the chat list means: there are new messages in this chat that you have not read yet. Rasum does not show a number. Open the chat, and the dot disappears.

What does the @ in the chat list mean?

The @ at sign @ to the right of a chat means: someone has mentioned you in this chat, and you have not read it yet.

What does the crossed-out bell mean?

The crossed-out bell means: this chat is muted. You do not get notifications for it. See Manage a chat.

Why does the call button show a camera when I only want to make a voice call?

In Rasum, the call button at the top right of the chat is always a video camera . After tapping it, you choose “Voice call” or “Video call”. This applies in direct chats and in groups. See Calls.