How to block spam messages on iphone

Jennifer Still

Jennifer is a writer and editor from Brooklyn, New York, who spends her time traveling, drinking iced coffee, and watching way too much TV. She has bylines in Vanity Fair, Glamour, Decider, Mic, and many more. You can find her on Twitter at @jenniferlstill.

Kyle Wilson

Kyle Wilson is an editor for the Reference team, based in British Columbia, Canada. Outside of Insider, his work has also appeared in publications like The Verge, VICE, Kotaku, and more. He periodically guest co-hosts the Saturday tech show "Tech Talk" on the iHeartRadio station C-FAX 1070.

It's annoying to get a notification on an iPhone, only to find out that it's for a text message from an unknown number that includes a suspicious link. Unfortunately, robocalls have been incredibly prevalent in the past year. A lot of these, when mishandled, can lead to anything from malware infecting a device to identity theft or blackmail. Of course, Apple device owners can easily delete spam texts from the iPhone's Messages app and call it a day, but a more effective solution may be needed when it happens daily and on more than one occasion. There are iPhone settings users can tweak to make it easier to isolate unwanted messages from unknown senders. Users can also download third-party apps to ensure their inboxes are free from scam messages.

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Blocking text messages on an iPhone is the first go-to when Apple users receive annoying and unsolicited messages, which can be a tedious process for an already-overflowing inbox. There's a way to filter iMessage messages from unknown senders. This not only turns off incessant notifications of scam texts but also conveniently files all scam texts into an area where users can review them individually in one go.

Related: How To Answer Incoming Calls With A Text On iPhone

To filter iPhone messages, open Settings, scroll down, and hit 'Messages.' Under 'Message Filtering,' switch the 'Filter Unknown Senders' toggle to green. After this, a separate tab in the Messages app called 'Unknown Senders' will be generated, and any potential spam received on the iPhone will be filed there. This includes any text message that comes from a phone number not saved in the iPhone's Contacts app, so be sure to add recognized text senders to the address book. However, this may not be a suitable workaround for users who regularly employ restaurant, grocery, or other package delivery services. These companies often have a rotation of workers that reach out to customers directly through their phones during the process. If an order delivery is expected, check the Unknown Senders tab in Messages for order updates, as these transaction messages will likely be filtered into it.

Additional Options That May Block Spam Texts More Efficiently

When scammers contact iPhone users with the Filter Unknown Senders option enabled, notifications for these messages sometimes slip through the cracks. To disable this, go to Settings, head to 'Notifications,' tap 'Messages,' then choose 'Customize Notifications.' Under 'Allow Notifications,' switch the 'Unknown Senders' toggle off. This stops alerts for texts from senders not saved in Contacts, so again, check the Unknown Senders folder in Messages to make sure nothing important is left unread.

Users can also install iPhone apps specifically designed to block SMS spam. Some excellent ones include RoboKiller, TextKiller, and SpamHound. Certain mobile carriers also have their own spam-blocking app in the App Store so that users can try those. Once any of these options are installed, ensure the iPhone is adequately protected from spam by manually enabling the spam filter app. First, head to Settings, tap 'Messages,' then under 'Message Filtering,' choose 'Unknown & Spam.' Next, find the toggle switch for the filter app selected and hit 'Enable.' Remember that these settings will only appear when a spam-blocking app has been installed and that users can only enable one blocking app at a time.

The last-ditch effort to curb spam texts from inundating iMessages is to block and report phone numbers that send them. First, open the iPhone text message in question—make sure not to click any links in the text body—and tap the phone number on top. Next, hit 'Info,' select 'Block this Caller,' then confirm with 'Block Contact.' Additionally, a small 'Report Junk' link may appear underneath some text messages deemed suspicious by Apple. Hit it, then tap 'Delete and Report Junk.' If this link does not appear under the text message that the user thinks is spam, long-press the message body, tap 'Copy,' then send it as a new message to 7726 (SPAM), the Federal Trade Commission's spam hotline. Finally, make sure to never reply to any spam messages, even if it asks to text 'STOP,' 'UNSUBSCRIBE,' or 'NO' to be taken off their list. This will stop any scammer from verifying the iPhone's phone number is valid.

Block Spam Calls Or Contacts On iPhone

In addition to blocking spam texts, iPhone users can also block spam calls or calls from specific contacts. To do this, open the Phone app and tap on either the Favorites, Recents, or Voicemail tab. Tap the 'i' next to the number or contact that needs to be blocked. Scroll down on the page and tap 'Block this Caller.' If the number happens to be saved in a user's contact list, they can open 'Contacts,' tap on the contact that needs to be blocked, scroll down and tap 'Block this Caller.' iPhone users can review blocked contacts at any time by opening the Settings app, tapping 'Phone,' and then 'Blocked Contacts.' Tapping the 'Edit' button will let users remove blocked contacts from the list.

To deal with spam calls, users have the option to manage calls from unknown numbers. This can be done by opening Settings, tapping 'Phone,' and then 'Silence Unknown Callers.' This will silence calls from unknown numbers and send them straight to voicemail. Of course, the caveat here is that users might end up missing calls from delivery services, or those from places like hospitals, banks, and insurance companies. A better option would be to enable 'Silence Junk Calls' in 'Phone' settings, which blocks known spam numbers identified by carriers on an iPhone.

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