diff --git a/frontend/app/src/components/home/ProposalGroupFilters.svelte b/frontend/app/src/components/home/ProposalGroupFilters.svelte
index 854643a4bd..7f652dae90 100644
--- a/frontend/app/src/components/home/ProposalGroupFilters.svelte
+++ b/frontend/app/src/components/home/ProposalGroupFilters.svelte
@@ -14,7 +14,7 @@
 
     export let selectedChat: ChatSummary;
 
-    const OC_PROPOSALS_NAME = "OpenChat Proposals";
+    const OC_GOVERNANCE_CANISTER_ID = "2jvtu-yqaaa-aaaaq-aaama-cai";
 
     type SectionLabels = Record<ProposalActionCategory, string>;
 
@@ -38,7 +38,7 @@
     $: topics = [...$proposalTopicsStore];
     $: groupTopics =
         selectedChat.kind !== "direct_chat" &&
-        selectedChat.name === OC_PROPOSALS_NAME;
+        selectedChat.subtype?.governanceCanisterId === OC_GOVERNANCE_CANISTER_ID;
 
     $: grouped = [
         ...client.groupBy(topics, ([id, _]) => {
diff --git a/frontend/app/src/components/home/thread/Thread.svelte b/frontend/app/src/components/home/thread/Thread.svelte
index 9ca2b09fd8..eaa2ee9c6c 100644
--- a/frontend/app/src/components/home/thread/Thread.svelte
+++ b/frontend/app/src/components/home/thread/Thread.svelte
@@ -79,6 +79,7 @@
     $: readonly = client.isChatReadOnly(chat.id);
     $: thread = rootEvent.event.thread;
     $: loading = !initialised && $threadEvents.length === 0 && thread !== undefined;
+    $: isFollowedByMe = thread !== undefined && (thread.followedByMe || thread.participantIds.has(user.userId));
 
     function createTestMessages(ev: CustomEvent<number>): void {
         if (process.env.NODE_ENV === "production") return;
@@ -271,8 +272,11 @@
                             me={evt.event.sender === user.userId}
                             confirmed={isConfirmed($unconfirmed, evt)}
                             failed={isFailed($failedMessagesStore, evt)}
-                            readByMe={evt.event.messageId === rootEvent.event.messageId ||
-                                isReadByMe($messagesRead, evt)}
+                            readByMe={
+                                evt.event.messageId === rootEvent.event.messageId ||
+                                !isFollowedByMe ||
+                                isReadByMe($messagesRead, evt)
+                            }
                             readByThem
                             observer={messageObserver}
                             focused={evt.event.kind === "message" &&
diff --git a/frontend/openchat-client/src/openchat.ts b/frontend/openchat-client/src/openchat.ts
index 7ce1b16def..2dcdc0ffea 100644
--- a/frontend/openchat-client/src/openchat.ts
+++ b/frontend/openchat-client/src/openchat.ts
@@ -2174,15 +2174,6 @@ export class OpenChat extends OpenChatAgentWorker {
                 this.config.meteredApiKey,
             );
 
-            const isFollowedByMe =
-                this._liveState.threadsFollowedByMe.get(chat.id)?.has(threadRootMessageIndex) ??
-                false;
-            if (isFollowedByMe) {
-                const lastLoadedMessageIdx = this.lastMessageIndex(this._liveState.threadEvents);
-                if (lastLoadedMessageIdx !== undefined) {
-                    this.markThreadRead(chat.id, threadRootMessageIndex, lastLoadedMessageIdx);
-                }
-            }
             if (ascending) {
                 this.dispatchEvent(new LoadedNewThreadMessages());
             } else {
@@ -2217,16 +2208,6 @@ export class OpenChat extends OpenChatAgentWorker {
         return [resp.events, userIds];
     }
 
-    private lastMessageIndex(events: EventWrapper<ChatEvent>[]): number | undefined {
-        for (let i = events.length - 1; i >= 0; i--) {
-            const evt = events[i].event;
-            if (evt.kind === "message") {
-                return evt.messageIndex;
-            }
-        }
-        return undefined;
-    }
-
     removeChat(chatId: ChatIdentifier): void {
         if (this._liveState.uninitializedDirectChats.has(chatId)) {
             removeUninitializedDirectChat(chatId);
diff --git a/frontend/openchat-client/src/stores/markRead.ts b/frontend/openchat-client/src/stores/markRead.ts
index 7c52384df5..337ddb4897 100644
--- a/frontend/openchat-client/src/stores/markRead.ts
+++ b/frontend/openchat-client/src/stores/markRead.ts
@@ -53,7 +53,10 @@ export class MessagesRead {
     }
 
     updateThread(rootIndex: number, readUpTo: number): void {
-        this.threads[rootIndex] = readUpTo;
+        const current = this.threads[rootIndex];
+        if (current === undefined || current < readUpTo) {
+            this.threads[rootIndex] = readUpTo;
+        }
     }
 
     setThreads(threads: ThreadRead[]): void {
@@ -378,7 +381,7 @@ export class MessageReadTracker {
             return this.waiting.get(context)?.has(messageId) ?? false;
         } else if (context.threadRootMessageIndex !== undefined) {
             const serverState = this.serverState.get(context.chatId);
-            if ((serverState?.threads[context.threadRootMessageIndex] ?? -1) > messageIndex)
+            if ((serverState?.threads[context.threadRootMessageIndex] ?? -1) >= messageIndex)
                 return true;
             const localState = this.state.get(context.chatId);
             if ((localState?.threads[context.threadRootMessageIndex] ?? -1) >= messageIndex)