Message Blocking Is Active – What Does It Mean And How To Fix
One of the most common ways to communicate with your peers, family, and people you may know is by texting. You may have experienced this message popping up during urgency when trying to send a text like other users: “ free msg: unable to send a message – message blocking is active.”
This may be quite a troublesome issue that prevents you from sending any texts at all.
This error message issue is seen on both iOS and Android devices so if you are one of the many who face this problem, this article will guide you in knowing what it means and how to fix it.
What Does “Message Blocking is Active” Mean?
The “message blocking is active” usually means that any attempt you send a message to a person will not be received by them. You will be displayed this default text on the screen: “free msg: unable to send a message – message blocking is active.”
There are various reasons why you may be facing this issue which blocks you from sending texts.
Why Is Message Blocking Active?
We have jotted down all the reasons that may show you the “message blocking is active” error on your phone:
1. Short Code Error
This is a common reason in T-mobile users if the shortcodes are inactive or non-functional.
If you have confirmed that the shortcode error is not from your end then you need to confirm from your service provider or get help from professionals in this matter.
2. Service outage
The “message blocking is active” error may pop up if you are facing some service outage. This may be due to maintenance being done by your service provider so you may want to wait for this one out. If the problem persists, do make sure to contact them as soon as possible.
3. Blocklist
You may face the “message blocking is active” error on your device if you are blocked by the recipient or vice versa.
You can check with the user if you have been added to the blocklist by mistake and see if you can send texts or not.
4. Mismatching data plans
If you have subscribed only to data offering plans then you may not be able to send messages to others and maybe displayed the “message blocking is active” error on your screen.
5. SIM card not working
If there is an issue with your SIM card for example it being blocked or the number deleted, then you may face the problem of not being able to send messages to anyone.
You can either check in with your service provider if they can fix the issue or get a new SIM with the data plans needed to send texts.
How To Fix “Message Blocking is Active” Error on your iPhone
We have compiled a list of solutions on how to fix the message blocking is active status on both android and iOS. Read below to know all the methods to fix this problem:
1. Check If The Number Or Email Address Is Correct
Sometimes a mismatch in the number or email address you have used to access your phone may give you trouble in delivering messages to others and you may be getting the “message blocking is active” status every time you try to send a text.
The first thing you can do is to check the validity of your email using an email verifying page on the web browser or simply open the Settings app on your device and tap the phone option.
From there navigate to the about tab and click on the sim. When you scroll down you will see a number that will indicate your SIM card number.
If you are using an email to access your iPhone then go to the settings option and click on the profile icon that displays your image. Scroll down and your email should be noted there which is connected to your Apple ID.
If you wish to update it, you can simply enter the pin of your phone and change the email.
2. Check for network coverage being available in your area
You may be facing the problem of undelivered texts and the error message displaying on your phone screen if your service provider is out of coverage in the area you are in.
If your phone is receiving coverage, you will see the graph bars appear on the top right corner of your screen.
Generally, the bars get replaced by a cross symbol if your phone is unable to receive bands.
In case you are sure of being in a coverage range, you can try restarting your phone or putting it on airplane mode for a few seconds before turning the mode off and checking if the network bars appear or not.
3. Check if your phone number is working or not
If your phone number has been shut down or is inactive due to some reason then you may see the error popping up on your screen saying “message blocking is active.”
The easiest way to check whether your phone number is working or not is to give a call on the phone.
If the dial tone tells you that the number is unavailable then you can check in with your SIM card provider for the issues related to your number.
4. Try To Send Plain Text
Excessive attachments, emojis, or other files may be a reason why your messages are not getting sent to the recipient thus making message blocking active on your phone. This method has proven to work for a lot of users.
So, you can simply send plain text to the recipient without any attachments and emojis linked to it to see if the error message appears or not.
5. Try Calling The Number In Question
Due to some glitch on your SIM card, your phone may not be available for texting at times. This can be due to the wrong country code entered on your phone.
You can try solving this issue by giving a phone call to your number to check whether it is working or not.
Also, you need to make sure you have input the right number of the recipient to whom you are meaning to send the text.
6. Is Messaging Services Enabled On Your Account?
If your data plan does not include incoming and outgoing SMS then the chances are you will be greeted by the message blocking is an active error message.
You can check whether the SMS service is provided by your SIM company by accessing their application and checking on the data package you have subscribed to. You can try and buy a new pack or buy some talk time to send texts from your phone again.
7. Confirm Your Email-to-text Address With Any Senders
At times, the message blicking can be related to your emails as well. You may encounter issues in sending and receiving emails along with your text messages.
To fix this, you can try logging back into your Google mail or other mail platforms that you use to operate your phone and if needed, update your mail ID if it has become inactive. You can also update your number if you have missed out on putting it in or changed your SIM.
After you have done the said changes, try to send some emails and texts and check in with your receiver. This should have solved the “message blocking is active” problem on your device.
8. Power Cycle or Soft Reset Your Phone And Remove The SIM Card
This should be the last method opted by you considering a complete soft reset to your phone will erase any data that is present.
Simply navigate to the settings option on your phone and scroll down to locate the reset tab. Click on it and select the factory reset option and confirm okay. In the process, you can remove the SIM card before installing it back again.
When you are done resetting your phone, check whether you can send messages or not.
9. Eject and Swap Sim Cards
The last successful method to eliminate the “message blocking is active” status on your phone is to try and switch your SIM card to a new one.
Your SIM card may have shut down due to some unwanted circumstances which may be barring you from sending messages to people.
Simply remove the SIM tray from your phone by using the ejector pin which comes with your phone and remove your SIM card from the slot. Make sure the new SIM card is activated by the service provider and put in the new SIM.
Now you can try and check whether your SIM is allowing you to send messages or if you still get the “Message blocking is active” status on it.
Conclusion
To conclude this article by saying that the “message blocking is active” is a fairly common error that occurs due to mistaken blocks done by the party or simply your SIM card not providing you with the services you need.
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