Earlier, my family and I got three group texts in a row, from different sources, that were phishing for Amazon. I noticed there was no delete and report as junk option. Do they not show up in group text messages in iPhones’ iOS v18.5 and macOS Ventura v13.7.6.
Thank you for reading and hopefully answering soon. :)
When I use the delete option I get a new dialog box that includes the delete and report as junk option.
It’s probably worth reporting junk, but it may not seem to do much. With an iMessage account, Apple uses the information to identify and block fraudulent accounts. With SMS/MMS/RCS messages, the information may be passed along to the carriers, but given how easy it seemingly is to spoof numbers and switch accounts, I doubt it will have much effect.
If you receive spam that is obviously a scam or other form of criminal activity, you can report it to the FBI. Their Internet Crime Complaint Center: https://www.ic3.gov/ has a form where you can file a complaint.
Like so many things, you are not likely to receive any response (unless you lost enough money to warrant an immediate investigation), but your reports will (I assume) be combined with others and if enough complaints accumulate, action may be taken.
Again with my screen shots with no message and weird code: Image Chest
I am reading and answering
I’ve been interested in how generative AI’s handle various questions. So I put your question into Perplexity (a TidBITS Talk designated “answer engine”). How do you rate its answer?
https://www.perplexity.ai/search/my-family-and-i-got-three-grou-_4CEytytRumqoTXfw_oHAQ
I’ve seen a rise in group-RCS spam messages over the last couple of weeks. I got a fresh one this morning. All of them have had a Report Junk option on my phone, at least.
At least with RCS, messages are sent using Internet (SIP) protocols, not the old phone-network SS7 protocols, so the phone company in theory should be better able to identify spoofed messages.
Apple says,
If you don’t see the option to report spam or junk messages you receive with SMS, MMS, or RCS: Contact your carrier. See the Apple Support article Wireless carrier support and features for iPhone.
…but the linked article doesn’t actually appear to have any carrier-related information on support for reporting junk messages.
Interesting. Which carrier do you have? We have VZW. I did notice other receivers are my family members.
Verizon here too.
I did notice other receivers are my family members.
Hmmm. The Report option shows up, as it says the screenshot, when “The sender and other recipients are not in your contact list.” If some of the recipients are in your Contacts list, it might be enough for Messages to consider it a “known contacts” group and hide the “report junk” option.
So, that explains why I am not getting the report junk option. Sneaky spammers.
The “report junk” link shows up whenever you get a message from someone not in your contacts list. But it goes away after you send two or more replies, so you can’t reply with a barrage of dirty words and still be able to report the sender 
. But you can send a STOP or END reply, which should block anything sent via a legitimate mass-mailing service, and still report it.
Tapping the “report” link will forward the message to the network that delivered it (Apple, if it iMessage, or your mobile carrier if it is SMS/MMS/RCS). What they do with it after that is anybody’s guess.
Just want to add this excludes just about every scam–such as the unpaid toll scam and the OP’s situation–so it’s best not to respond at all to obvious scams. In fact, many recent scams rely on a recipient sending a response in order to activate hyperlinks in subsequent texts.
Well, today is turning into a good day to accumulate anecdotes. I hope you’re happy!
This new one came in from an international number (+27, South Africa)
…and there’s no “report” option, only a block option for the group. RCS groups can have names; this one has a weird hex string for a name.
Since many scams are from spoofed numbers, any reply – profane or mundane – will most likely be sent to a totally unrelated party anyway. And the other numbers in these group texts are likely fellow victims; the last thing I want to do is pile on with a reply-all.
I’m going to manually add the sender to a block list for now.
I don’t even get a block option. It wouldn’t matter since each from number is different. :( I wonder if Apple added more options in its iOS v26 to handle these text spammers. I’m also glad it is happening to many others beside my family. I also don’t reply to these spammers. I did noticed a few numbers, not in my Contacts, left the group chat. I am sure spammers will know that number works to them. :(
Well, yes, you have to use some intelligence. If you get messages that are clearly scams (e.g. “click this link to send us 27 bitcoins or we’re repossessing your dog”), you should report the scam via the Apple link and maybe report it to the FBI if you like.
But I get lots of other spams that are legitimate. During election season, I get several per day from every political candidate under the sun. They usually get nasty responses (doesn’t matter who they’re campaigning for - I hate all spammers, regardless of intentions) followed by unsubscribe messages.
Again, you need to use judgment to determine if the sender is a scam with a fake/forged address, then yes, report and delete it. But if it looks like it’s coming from who they say it’s coming from, then have fun.
That doesn’t help because, as you said, the scams tend to come from fake addresses. And a different one every time. You won’t block the scammers, but you may block an innocent third party.
