How to know if someone has blocked your telephone number
It can be frustrating when someone doesn’t want to talk to you and blocks you. It isn’t easy to know if someone blocked you, but there are hints. The easiest way to find out if someone blocked you is to ask them. Contacting someone who deleted you from their address book is risky and uncomfortable. You might want to do some sleuthing on your own.
Whatever phone you use, from the AppleiPhone 15 Pro Maxto theGoogle Pixel 8 Pro, there isn’t a magic notification that alerts you when someone blocks you. This feature was absent from theAndroid 14update, and it’s unlikely that a future update will add it. Preventing you from knowing that someone blocked you maintains the other person’s privacy. You can use workarounds to find out if someone cut off contact with you.
An important tool for setting digital boundaries
What happens when someone blocks your telephone number?
When someone blocks your number, you don’t receive a notification. How do you know you’ve been blocked? A few key signs can give your blocker away. When you call the number, you may only hear one ring or no ring before the call goes to voicemail. With regular calls, your phone rings multiple times to give the receiver a chance to answer their phone.
One way to test this situation is to leave a voicemail and wait. If you’ve been blocked, the recipient doesn’t receive a notification and can’t respond. If you don’t receive a returned call or text message within a few days, you may be blocked.
Some carriers bypass voicemail and announce that the caller is busy or unavailable before disconnecting your call. Ask friends to call the recipient’s number while you keep trying, then observe the call. You have your answer if your friends' calls go through and yours doesn’t.
Google Messages featuresRCS (Rich Communication Services). If the sender and receiver activated read receipts, a blue double check indicates that your message was read. Alternatively, send a text message from a different number and wait. Messages you send from your blocked number don’t appear on the recipient’s phone, even though the status says it’s delivered. Recipients only see the messages after unblocking you. Hence, it’s better to text them with one they aren’t familiar with. This process works differently on some smartphones, and the messages may not be delivered.
If you use iMessage and someone blocks you, the text message is a blue bubble and never switches to green.
If you or the person you’re trying to contact recently switched from an iPhone to Android, you may encounter problems if the Android owner’sphone number wasn’t deregistered from iMessage. If the number was deregistered in iOS, and you still encounter problems, delete your text conversation with the other party and send the other party a text to do the same.
How to know for sure if you’re blocked
There are ways to get closure if you need to know if you’ve been blocked. These techniques may give you the knowledge you seek, but your persistence may undo any chance of being unblocked.
Reach out on social media
If you’ve tried contacting the person who may have blocked you and don’t get a response, your last resort should be reaching out on social media. Blocking a phone number doesn’t mean the contact was blocked on social media. Send your potential blocker a polite message online. If you’ve been blocked on social media, it’s time to let it go.
Making a phone call is the easiest way to determine if you’ve been blocked without asking the person who blocked you. If you call them and your call goes straight to voicemail or the number is busy or unavailable every time you call, you’ve likely been blocked.
If you need to know, append*67before the number you believe blocked you. This hides your phone number from the recipient, letting the call go through but listing the phone number as Private number, Blocked, or Unknown caller (essentially, you’ll look like a spam call). If your calls go straight to voicemail, but your *67 calls get through, you may have been blocked.
If you live in the UK, put141before the number you’re calling to mask your phone number.
If you’re unsuccessful in contacting the person using the methods above, call them from a different phone number. You can alsocreate a burner numberif you don’t have access to another phone, although we do not advise this.
How to hide your phone number on Android and iPhone
If you’re set on calling someone you think has blocked you, be prepared for the consequences. You could ruin any chance at repairing an already damaged relationship.
How to hide your number on an Android phone
If you use aGoogle Pixel 8or a recent Pixel, or if your phone uses the Phone by Google app, you may be able to hide your caller ID. The steps below work for most people. Contact your carrier if you have a problem.
How to hide your phone number on Android with the Samsung Phone app
How to hide your number on an iPhone
What not to do
Regardless of why you may have been blocked, it’s best to leave people alone when they choose not to engage with you. Don’t get a burner phone or call your potential blocker from a different number. If they want to talk to you, they’ll unblock you and contact you. Likewise, don’t create a new social media account to contact them if they blocked your primary account.
If you’ve been blocked via phone and on social media, trust that the other person is serious about it and give them the space they want.
Getting blocked isn’t the end of the world
The hurt and frustration you might feel when someone blocks you is no joke, but you should respect their needs rather than find ways to contact them. It’s possible the person blocked you due to a disagreement or falling out, and they might come around and contact you when they’re ready. Otherwise, the block might have been accidental. This happens when a person hasn’tchecked the list of blocked numberson their phone. Sometimes, your call may not go through because someone put their phone on Airplane Mode.
Either way, move on. Focus on the people who are in regular contact with you and nurture those relationships. Maintaining the relationships you have is more important than rekindling something that has burned out.
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