Apple added flashy new features to Messages in iOS 26, but one of the most useful is also the quietest: a built-in spam filter that keeps junk texts from interrupting your day.
With the new update, Messages can now screen your texts and send suspicious messages into a separate section of the app.
Notifications for those texts are turned off by default, which means fewer buzzes from unknown numbers trying to sell you car warranties or crypto scams.
The feature builds on Apple’s existing message-filtering tools, but this time, it adds a new level of control. You can choose to screen both unknown senders and messages marked as spam.
If you turn it on, your main inbox only shows conversations from saved contacts or numbers you’ve messaged before. Everything else remains out of view unless you actively seek it out.
The updated Messages app features four categories:
- Messages
- Unknown Senders
- Spam
- Recently Deleted.
You can jump between them using a new filter button in the top corner of the app. If a message gets misfiled, you’ll see a small prompt on that button to let you know there’s something new to check.
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The filter works well for cold outreach and obvious scams. But it has a tradeoff: one-time passcodes from banks, apps, and websites often come from unfamiliar numbers.
If you rely on those texts and want them to appear in your main inbox, you may need to disable the filter.
The change won’t fix how spam works across the broader carrier network. It also won’t stop legitimate but annoying marketing messages from showing up in the “Unknown Senders” tab. But it does limit the noise. And that’s the point.
We spend too much time managing messages we didn’t ask for. This tool cuts that down without making you miss something important unless that something is a login code. In that case, it’s worth checking the settings.
Could this new filter finally fix spam texts on iPhone, or hide something important? We want to hear from you.
