Message blocking is active error message on iPhone

By: Emmanuel

What does it mean when your iPhone says ‘Message blocking is active?”

You may get a “message blocking is active” error message because you might have blocked the person on the other end, or your number has been blocked by the recipient of the message you were trying to send.

It could also mean that you have exceeded the text message limits of the plan provided by your service provider or for other reasons discussed further in this post. Read on to know more.

How to know when your messages are blocked on iPhone

There is no outright way to be entirely sure that the recipient of your message has blocked your number, but there are several ways to figure it out. We will discuss these methods below:

1. Hide your number and give them a private call

If you call a contact normally and it doesn’t connect or go through, you can try giving them a private call. If the private call connects and starts ringing like a normal call, it indicates that you might have been blocked.

To make this private call, turn off number sending so that your calls appear as a private number.

2. Send them an iMessage

The iMessage app is Apple’s instant messaging app that uses the internet from your data to exchange messages with your contacts. The delivery status will be below the message when you send a message using the app.

If the message is delivered, you will see a Delivered status message which will later turn to a Read status if the recipient enabled read receipts.

You might be blocked if you don’t see a delivered or read receipts status when you send a message, and the message remains in a blue bubble.

3. Phone half rings when you give them a call

If you call someone and the phone stops ringing halfway into its ring tone and then shows busy or goes to voicemail, you have probably been blocked.

4. Use other messaging apps to text them

If you suspect that you have been blocked from calling or sending messages using the normal messaging app of the iPhone, you can try using other messaging apps to see if you have been blocked there too.

You can try sending a message via an alternative messaging platform like Whatsapp or Telegram to confirm if you have been blocked.

Why does it say “Message Blocking Is Active” on the iPhone?

1. Blocked number by the sender or recipient of the message

As earlier explained, if a number has been blocked by the sender of a message or the recipient has blocked the sender’s number, the message blocking error message will most likely come up.

2. Service disruption

You may be experiencing a service outage if you receive the error message “message blocking is active.”

Maybe your network provider is performing maintenance and may have suspended your messaging service. It would be best if you waited a few minutes or perhaps a few hours before attempting to send the message again.

3. Shortcode problems

According to T-Mobile, an issue with shortcodes may cause you to receive this error message. Shortcodes that are either invalid or inactive can make you receive “message blocking is active” errors.

If you are sure that this is not a problem on your end, and T-Mobile is your service provider, contact them so they can help you out.

4. Restriction on text messaging apps

Recipients could have tampered with Settings in their messaging apps, which could cause error messages. On the other end, some recipients block messages from a particular user group.

Also, it’s possible that some messaging apps won’t communicate with your carrier correctly. You might need to see if you can manually authorize these programs to do so.

If you cannot fix this problem on your own, you might need to look at other text messaging apps as alternatives.

5. Data plan problems

This error message could appear if you attempt to send text messages on a cellular plan that does not support text messaging or on a plan that has exceeded your text messaging limits.

Message Blocking is active on iPhone (how to resolve this error message)

The first thing to check is the network on your iPhone. You need at least one network bar on your iPhone to be able to send and receive text messages. Service disruptions are usually restored after a while.

Check for any billing issues with your provider to ensure no temporary suspension of your messaging service.
Always use the primary messaging app that comes with your iPhone to send your text messages.
Check your blocked list and ensure you are not trying to send text messages to a number you blocked.
Always check the number to ensure you have the right one, not an invalid or non-existent one.
You should confirm the type of cellular plan you have subscribed to and ensure that it allows text messaging.
If texting international numbers, ensure you have the correct area code or number suffix.
It is essential to free up some space. If your iPhone memory is full, it may hinder you from sending and receiving text messages.
Make sure your airplane or flight mode is turned off. If it is on, it will disable the messaging service on your iPhone. You won’t get any text, and there won’t be any data connection. Make sure it’s disabled. You enable flight mode only when you are traveling.
If the problem is not still resolved, remove the sim card from your iPhone, and turn off your iPhone for 20 seconds. Put the sim card back in the iPhone and turn your iPhone back on.
If it’s still not working, restart your phone. Hopefully, this should clear the error message and allow you to resume texting your friends and loved ones.

Frequently Asked Questions about message blocking error message on iPhone

Q. Can you tell if someone is blocking your texts?

A. Yes, you can check the delivery status of the message to know if you have been blocked. If the message never gets delivered or read, it is probably a sign that you have been blocked. Otherwise, use any of the other means outlined in this article to be sure if you’ve been blocked.

Q. What happens if you text someone who blocked you?

A. The text will appear as sent from your phone, and your network carrier will charge you the standard rate for the message, but the delivery status of the message will never read as “Delivered” or “Read.”

Q. Do blocked messages get delivered when unblocked?

No, blocked messages will not be delivered after the recipient number unblocks it. A sent message has a window period which the network carrier will attempt to deliver it. After the window period expires, the message will be dropped, and a record of it will only remain on the sender’s phone.

Q. Where do blocked messages go iPhone?

Blocked messages only remain on the sender’s iPhone as a Sent Message. The recipient will not get the message, and the network carrier will simply drop the message after several attempts to deliver it.

Wrap up

This article has outlined several reasons you might get the “message blocking is active” error message. We have also outlined different ways you can use to resolve the issue and hopefully avoid getting such messages in the future. Thanks for reading.

If you have any questions about the message blocking error message, please ask them in the comments below.

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