If you own an iPhone, you might decide that you want to block a number on there from time to time. You may eventually have multiple blocked contacts on your device.
We will talk about blocked contacts on an iPhone in the following article. Setting up this functionality is as easy as utilizing a simple phone app.
What Does It Mean When You Have Blocked Contacts?
The block contact option is one you should understand fully before you take this action. When you hit block on a device like a smartphone, you are restricting someone from being able to contact you.
This means that when you use the phone app and block a number, the person behind that number can’t call you. Any phone calls they attempt from that number will not connect with your device.
Your blocked contacts can’t make Facetime calls to you. They can’t text you, either. In short, if you use the phone app and set this action in motion, your blocked contacts will be banished from your iPhone.
Why Might You Do This?
Before you tap block on any of the contacts in your phone list, it’s helpful to know some situations when it’s appropriate to take this action. You might tap block contact for the following reasons:
- You’ve had a fight with a friend, family member, or significant other, and you don’t want to talk to them for a while.
- There’s someone on your contact list who you want to cut out of your life, and this will begin that process.
- You don’t want to hear from someone for a certain period of time.
- You want to block potential or confirmed spam calls and send them straight to voicemail.
Any of these might be reasons to go to your Settings app and tap block for a name and number in your contact list or manage what calls you allow to reach you. Now, let’s learn how you can do those things.
How To Block a Number on an iPhone
Fortunately, you can tap block a caller and stop them from reaching out to you via your iPhone in a few simple steps. Here’s how you do it.
Go to your phone app and hit Voicemail, Recents, or Favorites. Find the number you want to block. Look for the lowercase “i” in a circle that should be next to it. Tap it.
This will bring up a list of options regarding what you can do about that contact and number. You’ll want to scroll down the list till you get to the option that says, “Block this Caller.” Tap Block this Caller to complete the process.
Is There Another Way to Do It?
That’s not the only way you can effectively block someone from contacting you via your iPhone.
You can also hit Contacts. Pull up the contact that you want to block. Scroll down to where you can hit, “Block this Caller.”
Once you hit it, you will have stopped that contact from reaching out to you through your iPhone.
You Can Also Manage Your Blocked Contacts
Let’s say for a moment that you tap “block contact” for someone in your phone list. Maybe you tap blocked contacts for a few individuals if you’re feeling antisocial or you’re arguing with several people you know. It’s easy enough to tap block this caller, but what if you eventually change your mind and want to communicate with them again?
You can tap blocked contacts to avoid talking with someone, and you can restore their communication abilities just as easily if they’re back in your good graces. To manage all your blocked contacts in the same place, just tap your Settings app. Then, scroll down to where it says Phone and tap it.
That phone app tap will reveal a full list of numbers that you have blocked. There may be one or two, or maybe there’s twenty or thirty. That depends on how many people you’ve seen fit to tap block this caller on or how long you’ve had your smartphone.
You can tap unblock for any number, and you can also leave any blocked that you still feel should not have access to you. Unblocking someone is as easy as learning to use the messages app. You just tap edit by their name and change their status in the messages app.
What About Unknown Callers?
There’s one more scenario we should run through in regard to unwanted individuals trying to contact you. You might have unknown senders who are reaching out to you. These incoming calls might be from telemarketers, or they might be random unknown people who somehow got your number.
Either way, you probably don’t want to speak to them. There’s a way you can filter unknown senders, and it’s worth running through right now.
Tap Settings, then Phone. From there, you might hit Silence Unknown Callers. This is an effective way to filter unknown senders and unwanted calls.
If you do this, you’ll still get calls from any unblocked numbers in your contact list. You can see your recent outgoing calls, and you will also still get Siri Suggestions.
You Can Filter Spam Calls as Well
Filtering unwanted calls that are potentially spam is also easy. Hit Settings, and then Phone. Next, hit Silence Junk Callers. That option is available with some carriers, but not all.
Remember that if you utilize this option, you’re essentially relying on your carrier to identify what is a spam call and what isn’t one. Most carriers do a good job with that, but it’s not unheard of for a carrier to block a legitimate phone call that you probably want to receive by identifying it as spam.
Can You Block Someone if You’re Currently on a Call with Them?
Some iPhone users want to know if it’s possible to block phone numbers if you’re currently on a call with the individual you want to block.
The blocked phone numbers feature is not available when you’re on a call with someone. You’ll always know that you’re still on an active call with them if you see the green phone icon that appears in your screen’s top right-hand corner.
Once you disconnect the call, though, you’re free to block a number. It can feel pretty satisfying to block someone’s phone number as soon as you get done talking to them if you feel angry at them.
Dealing with Blocked Numbers is Easy with iPhone
Call blocking is easy with modern iPhones. You can stop someone you know from calling, sending text messages, and trying to Facetime you. You can also filter messages and report junk pretty easily.
If you ever change your mind, you can also take someone off your blocked list. You can go back and forth blocking and unblocking a contact as many times as you’d like.
