How To Stop Bluetooth Pairing Requests

It is annoying when you have to deal with Bluetooth pairing requests every thirty seconds. Most Bluetooth devices will send a pairing request to other Bluetooth devices every few seconds when they are in close proximity, and you have Bluetooth turned on. The requests can interrupt you when you are working.

Below are solutions to try to keep off the requests.

How To Stop Bluetooth Pairing Requests

The easiest way to stop the requests is to turn off Bluetooth from the requesting device or switch it off completely when not in use. However, it will be a problem when it is a neighbor’s device or a device in the office that won’t stop sending the requests.

In most cases, the device that is requesting to connect to your device has connected before. However, this is not always the case as some request to connect even when they have never connected before. This is what makes it challenging for you to stop the pairing requests. However, you can try the following solutions to stop the requests.

For Devices That Have Connected Before

If the requesting device has connected to your device before, it retains the memory of the connection, and you need to make it forget. To do that, you need to open Settings >> Bluetooth and check the list of previously connected devices. If the requesting device is one of the devices, click the [i] next to the connecting device and view connection information.

Remove the device (if you have an Apple device) or forget the device (if you use an Android device). Once your device forgets the requesting Bluetooth device, the device will likely never send the requests.

While this will work in most cases, some devices will keep sending the requests, and you have to try other solutions.

Reset Your Bluetooth Settings

If the device keeps sending requests, you can try and reset the Bluetooth settings of your iOS or Android device.

If you have an iOS device, and you need to reset the Bluetooth settings, open Settings >> General >>Reset >> Reset Network Settings. This process will remove all the Bluetooth and WiFi settings to get you on a fresh start.

Enter your phone’s passcode and confirm to ensure you do not have any connected devices. Your phone will remove the requesting device from its memory, and this may stop the connection.

If you are using an Android device, open Settings >> System >> Reset Options. You will see different reset options from the reset options tab. Select the option Reset WiFi, Mobile, and Bluetooth and follow prompts in the next screen.

Enter your device password and the reset process will start. The process is instant, and you never have to wait. After that, your device will remove all the previous connections, and you have to repair any devices you ever paired in the past.

Rename Your Bluetooth Device

This option also works if the requesting device has previously connected to your Bluetooth device and now keeps sending the request. If you rename the device, the requesting device will fail to recognize the new name and the requests may stop.

However, some devices will still send the requests even after you rename your Bluetooth.

Pair the Requesting Device to a Different Device

This is one of the most successful solutions for people who have faced this problem. Again, it doesn’t work with all devices, as for some, the requests might start afterward.

Here, you only need to connect the requesting device to a friend’s device if the friend doesn’t work in the same office or stay with you. Once the friend leaves the premises, the requesting device will remember their device as the “last device they connected to.” The problem will now be on the new device that you connected to.

If the problem comes back as soon as the other device is off the premises, you need to try any of the other solutions above.

For Users With Access to the Requesting Device

If you have access to the requesting device, it is easy to stop the requests. You can either turn it off or reset it to forget your device. For keyboards, mice, and speakers not in use, you can switch them off and then you will have solved the problem.

If the devices have to stay on, you need to reset them to forget the Bluetooth device they keep requesting. For speakers, headphones, earbuds, and other Bluetooth devices, you need to follow the users’ manual to reset.

Most speakers and headphones require you to press the pairing button for a few seconds to reset the speaker. Once the speaker or the requesting device is reset, it may never request to pair to any other device again unless they are paired.

If the requesting device is a smartphone or a computer, you need to “Forget” or “Remove” the device they are requesting from the Bluetooth settings of the requesting device.

What If You Have No Access To The Requesting Device and The Device Has Never Connected to Your Device?

The requests appear to be a Bluetooth bug that has no fix yet. While the solutions above might work in some cases, there are instances where even a factory reset will help.

In such case, your option remains to ask your neighbor to switch off the device that keeps requesting to pair. If the neighbor can forget or remove your device, then you are safe. If the requests happen in your workplace, you can look for the device that sends the requests and switch it off to ensure the problem does not persist.

If you are using an older version Android or iOS, you can make your device undiscoverable after connecting to the devices you want. To do this, turn on Bluetooth, connect to the devices you are interested in, and then turn off Bluetooth discoverability. This way, the requesting device will not “see” your device and the requests will cease.

However, all new devices are always discoverable and there is nothing you can do to make your Bluetooth connection invisible. You can turn off your Bluetooth connection when not in use to keep off the requests.

Should you accept the requests?

If you know the device that is sending the requests, and you are sure that there is no hacker involved, you can pair to the device and then remove it to see when the problem ends. If you are not sure where the signal is coming from, you should not accept the pairing request as it may be coming from a hacker.

Closing Thoughts

If the problem still persists after trying all the above solutions, you need to report a bug. Check with your device OS provider on how to report a bug and do it. There are so many people who have faced this problem and not all of them have been able to solve it with the solutions above.

However, once you report a bug, your OS provider or device manufacturer will help with the issue. In most cases though, one of the solutions above will help you stop the requests. It may take some time to get a “Block Signal” button, but the solutions above should keep off the signal.