If you've updated your iPhone and suddenly stopped receiving key SMS messages, you're not alone. This common issue is caused by the "Filter Unknown Senders" privacy & notifications setting.
While this feature helps block spam, it was significantly enhanced in iOS 26 (or the latest major update) to aggressively separate messages and silence their notifications if the sender isn't in your contacts.
Your texts usually aren't lost; they are just hidden! This guide will show you how to find your missing messages and adjust this setting so you never miss another important SMS.
❓ Checking your filtered messages
First, let's see if this is happening to you. That missing GP message or service alert could be sitting in a hidden folder right now.
To find out, let's check the core setting: Open your Settings app, scroll down to the 'Messages' section, and then look for 'Message Filtering.'
1️⃣ Open Settings, scroll down and click on ‘Apps’
2️⃣ Scroll down and open ‘Messages’
3️⃣ Scroll down and look for ‘Message Filtering’
⚠️ If the toggle next to 'Filter Unknown Senders' is green, it's activated. This means any text from a number not saved in your Contacts is automatically moved out of your primary inbox. ⚠️
To confirm this, you can just open your Messages app. Now, look in the top-left corner. If you see the word 'Filters,' tap it. You should now see separate folders for 'Known Senders' and 'Unknown Senders.' That missing message is likely right there in the Unknown folder!
💬 Checking your Notifications
But there's a second, even bigger problem: notifications. Even if you check that Unknown folder, you might not be getting an alert when a new message arrives.
Go back to your main Settings menu, and this time, scroll down to 'Notifications.' Find the Messages app in the list. Scroll down and tap 'Customise Notifications.'
1️⃣ Open Settings, scroll down and click on ‘Notifications’
2️⃣ Scroll down and open ‘Messages’
3️⃣ Scroll down and tap ‘Customise Notifications’
See the 'Allow Notifications for Unknown Senders' toggle? If it’s grey, you won't get any sound or alert for those filtered messages.
🪛 Other Fixes
The Notification Fix
If you’d rather get alerts for all unknown messages, simply go back to:
Settings → Notifications → Messages → Customise Notifications
and toggle 'Allow Notifications for Unknown Senders' to green.
This will alert you to the new message, but it will still be neatly tucked away in the 'Unknown Senders' folder.
🚪 Allow all messages fix.
If you don't want messages sorted and just want all texts to go to your main inbox, go to:
Settings → Apps → Messages → Message Filtering
and switch the 'Filter Unknown Senders' toggle to grey (Off).
Now, all messages - known and unknown - will appear in one list, and you'll receive notifications for everything.