How To Block Emails On An iPhone: Goodbye SPAM!
Receiving unwanted emails can be problematic for many, but there are some easy ways you can block these types of communication from coming through your iPhone. If you find yourself trying to rifle through hoards of emails every day, you are not alone. Most of us have inboxes full of unwanted messages and struggle to figure out which ones are worth opening and which ones we would like to send directly to the trash. With a few easy steps, you can make your inbox cleaner and your life less complicated.
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How do you block emails on an iPhone?
You can easily block emails on your iPhone by doing it through your Contact List, doing it from the email itself, or unsubscribing from an organization’s email list to block them permanently from sending you more emails.
Dealing with an inbox full of emails is not only time-consuming, but it can also be problematic. Perhaps you start deleting emails because they all look like solicitations or junk, only to later find you deleted an important one that got mixed in with the others.
Or, maybe you end up opening an email that contains a virus, and now you’ve compromised your iPhone and perhaps your identity. Learning how to rid your iPhone inbox of all these unwanted ads, offers, and asks is an important part of keeping your security safe and not letting your valuable time go to waste.
I am someone who has gotten into the habit of reading and sending most of my email correspondence via my iPhone instead of my laptop or home computer. I like the convenience of being able to check emails while I’m waiting for a doctor’s appointment, sitting outside my kid’s sports practice, or killing some time before a work meeting is about to start.
But wading through countless unnecessary emails is a huge time suck and is annoying as well. Let me show you how easy it is to set up your iPhone so you can block the emails that you don’t want to see.
How Do I Block Emails on My iPhone?
When asked what is the best invention of the 21st century, many people will say the iPhone. And believe me, they would be in good company.
The iPhone has revolutionized the way we communicate with each other. From making phone calls almost anywhere on the planet, to taking phenomenal photos of our family and friends, iPhones (and other smartphones) have given us everything from a phone to a camera to a mini-computer that we can carry around in our purse or back pocket.
Being able to also communicate through the written word has made our iPhones one of our most coveted gadgets. Sending someone an email has never been easier, and receiving emails on our iPhone means that we can conduct business. stay in touch with teachers and doctors, and even keep up with organizations we belong to all by our iPhone.
But, along with all that efficiency and convenience has come the annoying fact that others can communicate with us through email as well. Companies are constantly selling our information to other businesses and every time you sign up for an e-newsletter or make a contribution to something, they can now inundate you with emails, whether you ask for them or not.
In order to manage your email inbox effectively, you need to take some specific actions that will make checking your email inbox less of a burden and chore, and more of something you look forward to. There are a few different ways you can successfully take back control of your emails, and block the ones you aren’t interested in.
1. Do It Through Your Contact List
An effective method for blocking those unwanted emails on your iPhone is to do it through the Contact List you have already established.
Let’s say you have a favorite store whose number you’ve saved because you reach out to them occasionally to check on the price of something. Or, you have saved your hair stylist’s phone number in your phone as a Contact for making appointments or follow-up questions.
Problem is, that favorite store and your hairstylist love sending out emails every few days with their latest promotions, updates on staff changes, or other information that isn’t pertinent to you. You don’t want to have to decide if you should read it or send it to your Trash.
You’d rather just not receive those emails at all.
Here’s an easy fix.
Go to your Settings app on your iPhone and tap on the Mail icon. In the Mail screen, choose the Blocked Sender Options.
Now you will see a variety of things you can do under the Blocked Sender Options tab. Choose the option, “Move to Trash.”
After you choose the “Move to Trash” option, you will then be prompted to put in the Contact information.
Once you add the Contact that you want to block, you will no longer receive emails from that Contact, unless you go back and unblock them at any point.
2. Do It From the Email Itself
If you are receiving unwanted emails from a person, company, or organization that isn’t in your Contact list (and you don’t wish to add them to it) then you also have the option to block those emails directly from the inbox when you receive them.
After you open the email, tap on the sender’s name. You will see a new screen open on your iPhone that gives you a variety of options as to what to do with this sender.
You can add them to your Contacts, send them a message, or block them, among other things.
Tap the prompt, “Block this Contact.” You will be asked if you are sure you want to complete this action. Tap “Done.”
Again, as with blocking someone who is in your Contact list, you can always go back and unblock this person, company, or organization if you wish to begin receiving their emails at a later date.
3. Unsubscribe From an Organization’s Email List
Finally, though this method will take a bit more work on your part, this is an ideal way of permanently blocking emails from a source that you no longer want to receive communication from at any time.
Many of us sign up for emails from organizations or companies without realizing the amount of constant contact they are going to engage in.
We’ve all agreed to joining a mailing list of a favorite store, non-profit corporation, community organization, or maybe even a political campaign. At some point, the barrage of emails they send may get to the point of being so overwhelming that you don’t want to be on their contact list anymore.
Or, maybe the thing you signed up for is no longer relevant in your life, and you want to stop receiving information from them.
Whatever the case, if you wish to permanently block emails from a company or organization, you can go to their website and follow the prompts to unsubscribe from further communications.
Sometimes this can be tricky. Companies and organizations like to keep you on their mailing lists and communication platforms, so they don’t always make it easy to figure out how to unsubscribe from receiving their emails.
But, by law, they must offer you the option to stop receiving their communications.
Spend some time on their website, navigating through the prompts and you will eventually be able to block any emails from them before they even hit your inbox in the future.