iMessage Spam

[Anawrahta]

I'm getting hit with numerous iMessage spam messages every day. It's especially annoying because the messages pop up concurrently in all my devices and on my Mac.

I'm aware that there's a way to report the spam to Apple but I think this is useless because every spam message I get is from a randomly generated address and blocking it would do nothing to stop the next one.

Is there not a feature to block iMessages from people who aren't on your contacts?

 

[haxrnick]

Never had a problem with it. Knock on wood.

 

[yzjustdatguy]

I'm getting hit with numerous iMessage spam messages every day. It's especially annoying because the messages pop up concurrently in all my devices and on my Mac.

I'm aware that there's a way to report the spam to Apple but I think this is useless because every spam message I get is from a randomly generated address and blocking it would do nothing to stop the next one.

Is there not a feature to block iMessages from people who aren't on your contacts?

Go into Settings > Notification Center > Messages > Scroll down to the bottom and press "Show alerts from my contacts. The messages will still come but you won't get a notification for it. Hope that helps a little bit

 

[sliceoftoast]

Check out this website see if it helps you

 

[PNutts]

every spam message I get is from a randomly generated address and blocking it would do nothing to stop the next one.

Ah, so these aren't texts coming from a phone number but being sent as e-mail to the SMTP e-mail address for your phone number? For example, with AT&T an e-mail to YOURMOBILENUMBER@txt.att.net will show up as a "text" in iMessage.

AT&T gives you the ability to manage / block those types of messages for free at https://mymessages.wireless.att.com. Sorry, I don't know what other carriers offer.

 

[C DM]

Ah, so these aren't texts coming from a phone number but being sent as e-mail to the SMTP e-mail address for your phone number? For example, with AT&T an e-mail to YOURMOBILENUMBER@txt.att.net will show up as a "text" in iMessage.

AT&T gives you the ability to manage / block those types of messages for free at https://mymessages.wireless.att.com. Sorry, I don't know what other carriers offer.

I believe that would depend on those being SMS rather than iMessages which the OP seems to be describing.

 

[Anawrahta]

To those who have posted suggestions, thank you.

They are definitely iMessages, not SMS or email, because they are coming to my iPad and to the iMessages on my computer as well.

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Go into Settings > Notification Center > Messages > Scroll down to the bottom and press "Show alerts from my contacts. The messages will still come but you won't get a notification for it. Hope that helps a little bit

This was probably the best thing I can do right now. Thanks.

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Check out this website see if it helps you

Unfortunately this only describes how to block individual numbers/contacts/address. The spam I'm getting is coming from a completely random address every time. Blocking it as it comes has no affect since every time its a different address.

 

[PNutts]

I believe that would depend on those being SMS rather than iMessages which the OP seems to be describing.

They are definitely iMessages, not SMS or email, because they are coming to my iPad and to the iMessages on my computer as well.

Sorry I'm not being clearer, and I don't have enough details to be sure I'm correct here.

iMessage receives many types of messages. It can be a text from a dumb phone, an e-mail to your mobile number, or from another iMessage user (and probably more). All of those are routed to your iMessage client. Unless it originated on an iMessage capable device, it routed through your carrier.

People set their iMessage to show as sent from their phone number or e-mail address (iPhones) or e-mail address (iPods) so those are easy to identify. It's the other ones we're concerned with.

Unfortunately this only describes how to block individual numbers/contacts/address. The spam I'm getting is coming from a completely random address every time. Blocking it as it comes has no affect since every time its a different address.

I'm going to generalize a bit below.

If someone sends me an SMS message from a pager or a phone, the number should show up and I can block it with iOS 7. Conversely, spammers generally send messages as e-mail with a computer to the Internet, not with telephony via a carrier. These messages will come into iMessage showing from numbers like "725-572" or "1 (210) 100-801" (NOT a phone number) and they may increment by 1 for each message from the same source.

AT&T allows you to block messages sent to you as e-mail. You don't need to specify who they are from because you are blocking the ability for everyone to do this.

My settings are to block all text messages sent as e-mail, block all MMS messages sent as e-mail, and block all messages sent to my mobilenumber@att.txt.net. With those settings the only messages I can receive are from a telephony device that sends a true SMS.

AT&T also allows us to whitelist senders so they may send e-mail originating messages to my mobile number. So when I sign up for Redbox messages I go to my AT&T settings and allow Redbox messages to be delivered to me (again, in iMessage).

I'll stop here, but depending on your carrier I think you can solve your problem.

 

[C DM]

Sorry I'm not being clearer, and I don't have enough details to be sure I'm correct here.

iMessage receives many types of messages. It can be a text from a dumb phone, an e-mail to your mobile number, or from another iMessage user (and probably more). All of those are routed to your iMessage client. Unless it originated on an iMessage capable device, it routed through your carrier.

People set their iMessage to show as sent from their phone number or e-mail address (iPhones) or e-mail address (iPods) so those are easy to identify. It's the other ones we're concerned with.



I'm going to generalize a bit below.

If someone sends me an SMS message from a pager or a phone, the number should show up and I can block it with iOS 7. Conversely, spammers generally send messages as e-mail with a computer to the Internet, not with telephony via a carrier. These messages will come into iMessage showing from numbers like "725-572" or "1 (210) 100-801" (NOT a phone number) and they may increment by 1 for each message from the same source.

AT&T allows you to block messages sent to you as e-mail. You don't need to specify who they are from because you are blocking the ability for everyone to do this.

My settings are to block all text messages sent as e-mail, block all MMS messages sent as e-mail, and block all messages sent to my mobilenumber@att.txt.net. With those settings the only messages I can receive are from a telephony device that sends a true SMS.

AT&T also allows us to whitelist senders so they may send e-mail originating messages to my mobile number. So when I sign up for Redbox messages I go to my AT&T settings and allow Redbox messages to be delivered to me (again, in iMessage).

I'll stop here, but depending on your carrier I think you can solve your problem.

im fairly certain that specifically for iMessages that you can receive on multiple devices via your Apple ID those are only routed trough Apple's servers for iMessages and do not go through the carrier (beyond simply data perhaps, like any other generic data) like SMS messages. Measages sent to an email address associated with your phone number through the carrier (like an @text.att.net or simething similar) would get delivered as SMS/MMS through the carrier and come to the phone, but wouldn't show up as iMessages on other clients that are logged in with the same Apple ID.

So unfortunately it's not likely that any carrier settings related to messaging (which is essentially SMS/MMS) would apply. If Apple offered something similar for iMessages somewhere, now that could potentially help out with that.

 

[Anawrahta]

iMessage receives many types of messages. It can be a text from a dumb phone, an e-mail to your mobile number, or from another iMessage user (and probably more). All of those are routed to your iMessage client. Unless it originated on an iMessage capable device, it routed through your carrier.

People set their iMessage to show as sent from their phone number or e-mail address (iPhones) or e-mail address (iPods) so those are easy to identify. It's the other ones we're concerned with.

They are coming to me from an iMessage account set up as an email address. I can actually see what email they are coming from. This is why I cannot block them, because it's a completely random disposable email address every time. They are not coming to my provider's mobile email box service, I've had that turned off (ie. 12225555555@att.com although my provider is not ATT).

I have both my phone number and my email registered under the iMessage settings. They are coming to my phone number. I confirmed this by disabling the phone number option on my iPad and it stopped that device from receiving them.

I've attached a screen shot so you can see what I'm talking about. The message is in Chinese, and it's basically an advertisement for an app on the App Store, the link even takes you right into the app store app to the page of the app they're trying to get you to download. It pisses me off because there should be a way to report apps that do this, and Apple should remove and block those developers from doing so.

 

[luckydcxx]

I am getting the same spam iMessages. I've received about 4 or 5 of them over the past couple of months. Not as often as you.

 

[PNutts]

im fairly certain that specifically for iMessages that you can receive on multiple devices via your Apple ID those are only routed trough Apple's servers for iMessages and do not go through the carrier

Jimney Christmas. I misread the OP's first post about showing up on all his devices. My apologies.