"Trick" allows iPhone users to hide messages sent by unknown senders

If your iOS Messages app is filled to the brim with one-time authorization codes, spam, and other messages from people you don't know, it could make it hard for you to find a conversation that includes some important information. However, a TikTok user named @ambre_skye has posted a video showing how iPhone owners can use a feature that Apple created to hide messages from unknown senders.

Keep in mind that this little "trick" won't block you from receiving messages from people or companies that you don't know, but it will help you keep a more streamlined inbox. If you're not happy with this feature, the settings can be changed back at any time.

To hide messages on your iPhone from unknown senders, follow these directions to enable the feature. First, make sure that you have the latest version of iOS on your phone. You can easily verify this by going to Settings > General > Software Update and your phone will tell you if it is running the latest iOS build. If it is, go to Settings > Messages and scroll down to Message Filtering. Under that heading, toggle on "Filter Unknown Senders."

@ambre_skye I bet 99% of you didn’t know this iPhone secret #iphone#iphonetricks#GossipGirlHere#iphone11#iphone12#iphonehacks#viral#fy#trending♬ Mercy - Jonas Brothers

Now that you've set up this feature, the next time that you're in the Messages app, click on Filters in the upper left corner. That will result in three different options you can choose to filter your messages: All Messages, Known Senders, and Unknown Senders. If you want to clean out your inbox and hide messages from senders you don't know, select Known Senders. This will allow you to view only those messages sent by people and organizations that are familiar to you.

If you want to resume viewing all messages regardless of who sent them, tap on All Messages. And if you want to (for some strange reason) view only messages from senders unknown to you, tap Unknown Senders. The option you tap on last before leaving the Messages app will be the default setting unless you go back in and make another change.

If a tidy Messages inbox is important to you, it shouldn't take you more than a few minutes to enable the feature and set your filter.