When someone blocks your number, several things happen that prevent you from reaching them via calls or texts through their phone carrier:
- Calls: Your calls to the blocked number will not ring on their phone. Instead, your call may be automatically rejected, go straight to voicemail, or you might hear a busy signal or a prerecorded message indicating the number is unavailable. The blocked person will not receive any notification of your call or missed call
- Text Messages: Texts you send to a blocked number will appear as sent on your end, but they will not be delivered to the recipient's phone or inbox. On iPhones, iMessages from a blocked number may show as sent but not delivered, sometimes changing the message bubble color from blue to green, indicating the message is sent as SMS instead of iMessage. On Android, delivery receipts may not be shown, but this varies by device
- Voicemail: Calls from blocked numbers may be directed to voicemail, but the recipient may not be notified of these voicemails unless they check manually. Blocking does not necessarily prevent the blocked caller from leaving voicemails unless additional carrier-level blocking is applied
- No Notifications: The person who blocked the number will not receive any alerts or notifications about calls or messages from the blocked number
- Other Apps: Blocking a phone number on your device does not block communication through third-party internet-based apps like WhatsApp, Telegram, or Facebook Messenger. To block someone fully, you need to block them on these apps separately
- Caller ID Hiding: Sometimes, blocked callers try to bypass the block by hiding their caller ID (e.g., dialing *67 before the number). If such calls come through, it may indicate the number is blocked
- You Can Still Call: You can still attempt to call a number you have blocked, but if they have also blocked you or have settings to reject calls from private numbers, your call won't get through
In summary, blocking a number creates a barrier that prevents calls and texts from reaching the recipient's phone, with calls often going straight to voicemail or being rejected silently, and texts not being delivered. The blocked party is not notified about the block, and the blocking only applies to phone network communication, not third-party messaging apps
