Not receiving links in text messages from Android phones

Hey, all.


Several months ago, I started having difficulty sending and receiving hyperlinks to and from Android phones. The plain text SMS messages would go through just fine, but I could not see the links that were sent. It was like the person never sent me a link on my end, even though it showed in their phone that they had sent it.


The opposite would happen as well when I would try to send links. The recipient would see the plain text SMS message, but it was like I had never sent them a link, even though it showed on my phone that it was sent and received.


I thought the problem might be my iPhone 13 Pro or an issue with iOS16, but after updating both my iOS to 17.0.2 as well as my phone to the iPhone 15 Pro Max, I am still having this issue, the only difference being that the links I send are received by the Android users. However, I still cannot receive links when they send them to me.


Has this happened to anyone else? When I do a search for this issue, all the articles are about not being able to send any texts or not being able to click on hyperlinks. Those don't really apply to me in this case, so I thought I would post here to see if anyone had any suggestions.


Thanks in advance for your help, and please let me know if you have any questions.


I look forward to hearing any suggestions you might have.

Posted on Sep 29, 2023 11:52 AM

Reply
Question marked as Top-ranking reply

Posted on Oct 1, 2023 7:48 PM

Hi puzzleduser,


Since you specify this only happens via SMS, that implies that iMessage itself is working properly (otherwise, you wouldn't be able to receive or get links from iPhone users). With that said, SMS messages are handled entirely by your carrier. It may be possible that your carrier is potentially filtering these links (or the carrier(s) of whoever you're sending to.


We'd recommend reaching out to the carrier to see if everything is right on their end.


Cheers.

Similar questions

7 replies
Question marked as Top-ranking reply

Oct 1, 2023 7:48 PM in response to puzzleduser

Hi puzzleduser,


Since you specify this only happens via SMS, that implies that iMessage itself is working properly (otherwise, you wouldn't be able to receive or get links from iPhone users). With that said, SMS messages are handled entirely by your carrier. It may be possible that your carrier is potentially filtering these links (or the carrier(s) of whoever you're sending to.


We'd recommend reaching out to the carrier to see if everything is right on their end.


Cheers.

Oct 17, 2023 5:35 PM in response to puzzleduser

Hey, all!


Thank you for your responses and all your suggestions. When I was in the T-Mobile store trading in my iPhone 13 Pro and Apple Watch, I asked about this issue. They could not help with the issue. I was going to call T-Mobile support and/or stop by the local Apple Store; however, two days later, the problem fixed itself. I'm not sure what happened, but everything seems to be working okay for now. Again, I don't know what shifted or changed, but I can now receive links from Android users.


I wish I had a better answer, but for now, it seems to be okay. I'm hoping it continues. I still am a little anxious when I send links to Android phones hoping that they go through, but for now, it seems like all is well.

This thread has been closed by the system or the community team. You may vote for any posts you find helpful, or search the Community for additional answers.

Not receiving links in text messages from Android phones

Welcome to Apple Support Community
A forum where Apple customers help each other with their products. Get started with your Apple Account.