When a stranger writes to you

Where it shows up

Open Chats and choose the Requests filter, next to All and Unread. A request holds at most three short text messages: no photos, files, locations or contact cards. Nothing reaches your conversations until you accept it.

Accept or Reject

• Accept turns the request into an ordinary chat, with its messages in it.
• Accepting does not add anyone to anyone’s contacts.
• Reject removes the request. It is not a block: if you want the person to stop, block them.

Blocking

Open the person’s profile and tap Block contact. There are two switches, Block messages and Block calls: turn on one or both and tap Apply. Blocking messages does not stop calls, and blocking calls does not stop messages.

The other person is not told. To them it looks the same as any other reason they cannot reach you. Unblock is on the same profile.

Reporting

Tap Report on the profile, choose a reason (spam, harassment, inappropriate content or something else) and add details if you want. The same screen can block the person at once.

Closing the door in advance

In Settings → Privacy and security, Messages from strangers can be Allowed or Nobody. It governs first contact only: people you are already talking to are unaffected.

Who can call you offers Everyone, My contacts or Nobody. With My contacts, someone you already have a conversation with can call you too.