How to Block Unwanted Spam FaceTime Calls

How To Block Unwanted Spam FaceTime Calls

Have you been wondering how to block unwanted spam FaceTime calls to put an end to those annoying and creepy calls? If yes, you’re in the right place. 

Breach of privacy in today’s ever-evolving digital world is more common than ever. You could be doing everything in your power to build a secure digital space for yourself, but still get hundreds of spam calls and text messages every week. 

That can get irritating, and we understand this. 

 

Block Unwanted Spam FaceTime Calls

 

“Spam FaceTime calls from strangers” was all over Reddit a few years back, and despite trying several solutions, the issue still pops up now and then. Interestingly, another serious FaceTime bug allowed the callers to listen remotely even before the receiver picked up, in the same year. Well, it seems like 2020 isn’t the only year filled with unwanted drama and chaos. 

If you have been the victim of a similar situation and are wondering how to block unwanted spam FaceTime calls, we got you covered. There are several ways to block spam FaceTime calls, and this guide will walk you through each method in detail. 

Let’s get straight into it. 

 

1. Block the Contact in the FaceTime App

If you have been receiving unwanted FaceTime calls on your phone, one of the simple and easy ways to get rid of it is blocking the contact. 

You can block the number or the address anytime in four different apps, including the Messages app, Phone app, Mail app, and FaceTime app. The process of blocking contact in each app is similar to the others. You would not have to repeat it. As a result, blocking someone from one app will automatically block them from the other four apps. 

Here is how you can block unwanted contacts in the apps mentioned above. 

i) Phone App

To block phone of an unknown caller on the Phone app, follow the steps mentioned below:

  1. Open the Phone app and click on the Recent tab. 
  2. Find the number you want to add to your blocklist and tap on the “i” button next to the phone number on top of the screen. 
  3. Scroll to the bottom and click on Block this Caller to block contacts. 
  4. Once you confirm the option, your phone will block phone of the unknown caller. 

Block Unwanted Phone Calls

 

Now, return to the home screen. The unknown caller will not be able to call or text you anymore on any app. 

 


 

ii) Messages App

To block unknown senders on the Messages app in iOS 13, follow the steps mentioned below: 

  1. Open the text messages and click on the iMessages from unknown senders that you want to block. 
  2. Tap on the contact icon just above the number on the screen and choose info or ‘i’, to open a screen in the Phone app. 
  3. Click on the arrow to the right of the number on top and scroll down. 
  4. Tap the Block this Caller option to block messages from the contact. Doing so will also block phone calls as well as iMessages from unknown senders. 

If you use iOS 14, follow the steps mentioned below:

  1. Open the Messages app and click on the conversation of the contact you want to block. 
  2. Tap on the contact icon and choose info near the top of the screen. 
  3. Choose info again and scroll to the bottom on the new screen to find Block this Caller option. 
  4. Click on the option to block spam senders. 

This will direct all the text messages to the spam folder and you will no longer be noticed about them. 

 


 

iii) FaceTime App

To block anyone on FaceTime on iPhone or iPad, follow the steps mentioned below:

  1. Open the FaceTime app and tap on the contact you want to block. 
  2. Select the ‘i’ option next to the contact you want to block (email address or phone number). 
  3. Scroll to the bottom of the page to find the Block this Caller option. 
  4. Now tap on the option, and the contact will be blocked once you confirm the action. 

Block Spam FaceTime Calls

 

Once the contact is blocked, you will no longer be notified about FaceTime calls by them. However, they can still leave a voice message, but it will silently go to a hidden Blocked Messages section.

 


 

iv) Mail App

To block anyone in the Mail app, follow the steps mentioned below:

  1. If the sender is not in your contact list, add it to an existing contact and create a new contact. 
  2. Now, open your Settings app and tap Mail
  3. Under the threading option, click on Blocked Sender Options and select any one of the three choices available on your screen. 
  4. After you’ve chosen an option, go back to the Mail tab and scroll to the bottom.
  5. After that, click on the last option on the screen stating Blocked. 
  6. Tap Blocked and click on Add New. Lastly, add the contact you want to block. 

Block Unwanted Spam Mail

 

You can also simply open the Messages in the mail app from the person you want to block and click on the email address. You can do this if you already have selected any one of the Blocked Sender Options

 

 

2. Disable FaceTime 

If you have been getting spam group FaceTime calls frequently, it might be due to a bug. Therefore, it is best to disable the FaceTime app on your iPhone or iPad for some time till the issue gets resolved. 

To disable the FaceTime app in iOS, follow the method mentioned below:

  1. Open the Settings app on your phone. 
  2. Tap on the FaceTime option. 
  3. Click on the switch next to FaceTime to switch it off. 

Block Unwanted FaceTime Calls

 

By disabling FaceTime, you will not receive any notifications for the video calls. Furthermore, the caller will not know if you have disabled it. To them, it will look like you are not attending the call. 

To disable the FaceTime app in macOS, follow the method mentioned below:

  1. Open the FaceTime app. 
  2. Go to the Menu bar and tap on FaceTime
  3. Click on preferences and uncheck “Enable this account.”

Block Spam Calls macOS

 

Doing so will disable the FaceTime app on your iPhone and macOS. You can enable it by repeating the same method as mentioned above. 

 

 

3. Let An App Screen Your Calls 

If you do not want to disable FaceTime and are tired of blocking contacts, you can search for a screening app or service offered by your iPhone service provider. 

These apps will block known spam callers and label the suspected pre-recorded robocalls as suspicious. You will not receive any calls and messages from unknown senders and callers. 

Such apps include:

  1. T-Mobile Scam Shield 
  2. Verizon Call Filter
  3. AT&T Call Protect

Verizon Call Filter

 

Furthermore, you can also download third-party apps to protect yourself from unwanted spam calls. Some of the most famous apps are Hiya, Robokiller, and Nomorobo

These apps can be downloaded on iPhone easily. In addition to that, you can also download them on your iPad or iPod touch. 

 

 

4. Turn on Do Not Disturb Mode 

You can also block unwanted spam FaceTime calls by turning on the Do Not Disturb feature on your iPhone. This mode will send calls from unknown contacts directly into the voicemail. Your phone will not notify you about them. You will only be notified about the calls and messages from selected contacts. 

Here is how to Block Unwanted Spam FaceTime Calls on your device by enabling the Do Not Disturb mode. 

    1. Go to the settings app and tap Do Not Disturb. 
    2. Click on the switch next to the Do Not Disturb option on the top to turn the feature on.
    3. Now tap on “Allow Calls From” and choose the contacts you want to receive calls from. You can choose “All Contacts” if you are going to keep this feature enabled. 

 

However, it is important to keep in mind that once you disable this feature, you will start receiving calls from unknown numbers again. 

 

 

5. Enable Silence Unknown Callers

Another easy way to avoid getting calls from unknown callers is to enable Silence Unknown Callers. Your iPhone, iPad, or iPod touch will automatically block new or unsaved numbers instead of notifying you. 

To enable this feature, follow the steps mentioned below:

  1. Go to Settings and tap on the Phone app. 
  2. Scroll to the bottom and tap “Silence Unknown Callers.”
  3. Click on the switch next to the Silence Unknown Callers to enable the feature. 

 

This feature will silence all the calls from unknown numbers. You will be able to see them in your recent call list. However, if you dial an emergency number from your phone, the feature will be disabled for 24 hours. 

 

 

6. Turn to an Apple Advisor

If the methods mentioned above did not solve your problem, this might be the best time to contact Apple’s support team. They will connect you with an advisor who should be able to solve your problem in no time. 

 

 

Furthermore, if you are facing issues with group FaceTime, give our article How to Fix Group FaceTime Not Working a read.

If you still have any questions or confusion, drop them in the comment section below. 

 

 

If this guide helped you, please share it. 🙂

 

Author

  • Zainab Falak

    Zainab Falak is a staff writer for Saint and an expert in Microsoft Windows, having authored more than 200 posts. She has a Bachelors in Actuarial Sciences and her passion for computers extends to exploring various aspects, from UI customization to the Windows registry and exploring error codes. Twitter LinkedIn

2 comments
  1. The guide is helpful as there are some things that do help.

    I started receiving my first FaceTime spam 4 days ago, with hundreds of numbers on my blocked list (by hand) – they just keep coming in, it’s never ending. The bad part is, these are not real numbers, they’re all spoof numbers, which means Apple has no control over FaceTime phone number verification. They have a bug in their system and they’re not implementing privacy features as the consumer expects.

    The only thing that wasn’t helpful was turning to an Apple Advisor. Over the course of 45 minutes in live chat, I was constantly asked to hold while they looked for a solution. I mentioned to Anish on the Apple Live Chat that my 3 year old was answering some of these spam facetime calls (in groups of 20+) on camera. She’s 3, she didn’t consent to having her video be public – and yeh it’s a parental problem because I must have missed a feature somewhere on my iPad Pro that prevents unwanted callers from reaching my child and broadcasting the top part of her body.

    Anyways – this one important feature does not exist, and it should, because it’s my choice to have peace:

    “Only receive initial communication from known contacts” – this should be in every single communication system on Apple Devices. You can name this whatever you want. It needs to be on everything. Put in your safety measures for 911 periods, etc – that’s fine. While my family interacts with Apple’s family of products, it’s our right to have peace. I didn’t buy them to be an outlet for third party solicitation. If that were the case, I would have expected all of the products to be 100% free, and paid for every month by Apple to my carrier but even then I would not opt-in to solicitation, so obviously we were not given that choice.

    It’s 2021 – we avoid our marketing snail-mail, our robocaller phone calls, now we avoid our text messages and here comes FaceTime to top it off.

    I’m so tired of spam and robocalling that it may turn me towards spending a year of my life building apps or breaking Apple’s rules in order to stop it.

    Apple doesn’t care because the feature I mentioned does not exist – and I expect the future to be smarter than this.

  2. It really helped when you said that the way of blocking certain numbers or addresses would be the same with other applications or phones. I really want to stop spam calls, especially when a terrifying incident happened to me a year ago. It makes me feel anxious and conscious, so I hope that there are also legal ways to actually catch such callers actually keep them from bugging people like me in the future.

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