Introduction
Blocking someone on your iPhone can be a useful feature when you want to limit contact with someone you don’t want to receive calls, texts, or emails from. However, sometimes you might want to unblock someone on your iPhone, and you might not know how to do so.
In this article, we will give you a step-by-step guide on how to unblock someone on your iPhone, including using restrictions, iCloud, settings, and third-party apps. We also provide helpful troubleshooting tips to address some common issues you may encounter.
Step-by-Step Guide
The first method we will explore is using the iPhone’s built-in features to unblock someone. Here are the steps:
Explanation of the Method
The iPhone’s built-in blocking feature allows you to prevent someone from contacting you, and unblocking them will reverse this action. Once you unblock someone, they’ll be able to contact you again through phone calls, messages, and FaceTime sessions.
Steps with Screenshots and Detailed Explanations
- Unlock your iPhone.
- Go to “Settings”.
- Scroll down and click on “Phone”.
- Choose the “Blocked Contacts” option.
- Select the person’s name from your blocked contacts.
- Click “Unblock this Caller” option.
Once you’ve taken these steps, you have successfully unblocked your contact and can receive calls and messages from them again.
Possible Issues and Solutions
If for some reason your contact is still unable to reach out, it may be time to reset your phone once you have unblocked them. Sometimes, you may encounter problems when unblocking someone, and these can be due to various reasons such as network issues or software updates.
Using Restrictions
Explanation of the Method
If you have children or simply want to restrict access to certain features of your phone, you might have enabled Restrictions on your iPhone. By unrestricting the settings that allow phone calls and messages from the blocked person, you can unblock them.
Steps with Screenshots and Detailed Explanations
- Unlock your iPhone.
- Go to “Settings”
- Scroll down and click on “Screen Time”.
- Select “Content & Privacy Restrictions”.
- Click on “Allowed Contacts”.
- Select “Add Contacts…”.
- Choose the contact that you need to unblock.
Once you’ve gone through these steps, your previously blocked contact will be unblocked and can contact you again as usual.
Possible Issues and Solutions
If the blocked contact still cannot reach out after you’ve successfully unblocked them, you may want to double-check that they have not been added to any other blocked lists within your iPhone settings. It is also worth setting aside five minutes to finish a quick soft or hard reset after unblocking a contact and restarting your iPhone.
Using iCloud
Explanation of the Method
If you’ve blocked someone on your iPhone, the chances are good that you’ve also blocked them on other connected devices, such as an iPad or Mac. By unblocking contacts on iCloud, you can unblock contacts on all iOS devices.
Steps with Screenshots and Detailed Explanations
- Visit the official iCloud website using a computer.
- Sign in with your Apple ID and password.
- Click on the “Contacts” icon.
- Choose the contact that you want to unblock.
- Delete their contact information by clicking on the “Delete” icon.
- Sync up your iPhone by following the steps from earlier.
- Re-enter the contact information, and PIN the contact again.
Once you’ve completed these steps, the previously blocked contact will be unblocked on all connected iOS devices.
Possible Issues and Solutions
One possible issue that may occur when using this method is that the blocked person may not be saved in your iCloud contacts in the first place. To resolve this, add them as a contact to your iCloud account by clicking on the “+” symbol, filling in their details, and then clicking “Done” before proceeding with the steps above.
Using Settings
Explanation of the Method
Another straightforward way to unblock someone on your iPhone is using the phone’s settings, as it provides easy and fast access to third-party apps that can help you unblock a contact.
Steps with Screenshots and Detailed Explanations
- Unlock your iPhone.
- Go to “Settings”
- Click on “General”
- Select the “Storage & iCloud Usage” option.
- Find and click the “Manage Storage” option.
- Locate the app that the blocked contact used to contact you.
- Click on the app, then click on “Delete App” to complete the process of unblocking them.
If your blocked contact uses more than one app, you will need to repeat this process for each app.
Possible Issues and Solutions
This method is quite simple, but you may still find it difficult to find the app where the blocked person contacted you in the first place. If you need help locating the app, it may be useful to look through your call and message logs and try unblocking the contact for every app they called or messaged you from by trial and error.
Using a Third-Party App
Explanation of the Method
Some people may prefer using an application specially designed to manage blocked numbers. These apps come with various features that not only help to block or unblock someone but also provide extra security on your phone.
List of Some Recommended Apps with Their Features and Pricing
Hiya: Hiya is an application that helps you identify and block unwanted calls, texts, or emails. Additionally, Hiya scans the numbers and filters the scams, enabling the user to enter blocked numbers and therefore manage their contacts’ list adequately. This app is free, but with optional in-app purchases.
Truecaller: Truecaller is an app that helps you identify the contact associated with an unknown number. This app can identify spammers and help you block unwanted scammers from contacting you. Besides being free, it also includes an optionally paid membership for extra features.
Detailed Explanation of Using One or Two of the Recommended Apps
Most of these apps share a lot of basic interface elements, but we can look through how you can use Hiya to unblock someone easily.
- Open the Hiya app and go to the “Block” tab at the bottom.
- Find the blocked number and click the “Unblock” button.
You can perform the same steps with most of these apps to unblock someone quickly.
Possible Issues and Solutions
These apps require a stable internet connection to function correctly, plus they may not provide all the unblock features you require. If you encounter any issues while trying to use these apps, reaching out to the developers should provide a solution.
Troubleshooting Tips
Explanation of the Common Problems People Face When Blocking Someone on iPhone
We’ve established that issues may arise from blocking and unblocking a contact. Here are some of the most common problems people face:
- The person is still blocked, though you have already unblocked them.
- The person keeps getting sent to voicemail every time they try to call you.
- You are unable to send or receive texts, messages, or emails from the person.
List of Possible Solutions to These Problems
Here are some solutions to each of the issues:
- Restarting your phone can help fix the issue, as well as checking your network settings and internet connection to ensure no hindrances affect the process.
- Disable the “Do Not Disturb” feature, or unblock the individual from the “Blocked List” settings and then try calling again.
- Ensure the contact’s number or email is inputted correctly, and the signal strength on your phone is solid enough.
Conclusion of the Article
The ability to unblock someone on your iPhone should now be effortless and straightforward regardless of which method you choose. Remember, try the different methods listed herein until the problem is solved, and do not forget that restarting your iPhone and checking your network and internet connection can solve many of the issues. In conclusion, unblocking a contact on your iPhone is easy and it should take less than five minutes.