How to block numbers on iPhone SE after iOS 26 update?

Glad you were not surprised. I am surprised however that you have not been able to offer a solution to the problem that the option is not showing up. As I stated, it appears to be a rendering issue that is not limited to the block option not appearing as there is other information that does not show up, including but not limited to, Share Contact, Add to Favorites, etc. If the thread can be refocused on the original poster's concern, that is shared by many, I am open to all ideas and suggestions to address why the Share Contact /Add to Favorites options, in addition to Block Contact option is not rendering unless you hit the Home Button multiple times or in some instances wait for several seconds for some of these options to appear. I have an iPhone SE 1, 2, and 3. The SE 2 is on iOS 26.0.1 and the SE 3 is on iOS 26.1. I don't have the SE 1 handy. The orange hand does not appear on the SE 2 or 3 and the SE 2 does not even give me the i option at all. Just a blue phone icon. The rendering issue is happening on both but the hitting the home button two or three times seems to work better on the SE 2.

I tap the i, scroll to bottom and block contact option is still there. Have you updated to iOS 26.0.1? Have you done a forced restart?

Product Feedback - Apple

Recap: I have iPhone SE 2 and 3 running iOS 26.01 and 26.1 respectively and my carrier is T-mobile. I have the same issue on both phones and no magic orange hand. Hitting the home button repeatedly or waiting several seconds works intermittently to restore the missing options of add to favorites, share contact, block caller, etc. I backed up to my Mac mini completely erased my SE 2, updated to iOS 26.2 and then restored from my back up. It did not solve the problem that add to favorites, share contact, block caller, etc., is not rendering as it should without the work around and other hassles. I didn’t try on my SE 3 and don’t plan on trying it tonight. Doesn’t appear anyone else has had better luck.

Thank you for posting that!

The swipe left select the hand method worked on one new Spam call I just got today but not previous ones.

on older spam calls before this phone replaced my previous one the hand does not appear. only the clock and the trashcan so maybe that method only works on calls that came in since the new phone was activated. I have no “I”on any calls in my call log iOS 26 on a 17 Pro.

Send a bug report to Apple.

The more that sends a report the sooner a fix will be issued .

Please read the 7 pages of the thread you just added to for a discussion of this issue and how other users have solved it.

blue23rose wrote:

Lawrence, your solutions may work on your phone, but it seems that the issue might be related more with SE2 and SE3 iPhones.

It appears this is also not happening on all (most?) SE phone. So, while there does appear to be a bug, it's not universal.

Let Apple know what you're seeing here:

Product Feedback - Apple

I don’t often block nuisance calls unless it’s a repeat call from the same number , but I noticed the issue yesterday. Also running IOS 26.1 on an SE2 (and my provider is EE in the UK). My work around for now is to create a new contact called “Nuisance”. Then go to Privacy & Security >> Blocked Contact and add it to the list. When unwanted calls come in repeatedly from a new number, I will be adding them to the existing contact “Nuisance” until this ever gets sorted out.

whisperquiet wrote:

Extra useless steps to block spammers…..is there anything ios26 made easier to use?

Have you considered that it is useless to block spammers, period? You end up with thousands of blocked numbers that will never call you again. The purpose of call blocking is to block calls from people you know who you don’t want to hear from again (a ex, perhaps).

The slightly better call blocking strategy is to use a call blocking app such as NoMoRoBo, which currently is blocking 13 million numbers, but even then there are numbers that aren’t in their database and get through.

NO orange hand appears when I swipe left and I note that many others this orange icon also does not appear. Can apple fix this?

Try swiping ALL THE WAY LEFT. it is counterintuitive at first but once you realize you must swipe further than before the new iOS, it willl make sense.

You’ll need to use the link I provided in my first post to report the bug to Apple Support.

ritalhs16 wrote:

I was so frustrated by this also but I just found the solution!!!

In your Recent Calls, simply swipe to the left on the number that you want to block. There will be 3 icons - an orange hand, a blue clock, and a red trash can. The orange hand will allow you to block the number directly from your recent call log without needing to save as a contact. Quick and easy, sorry for doubting you, Apple!

Is that on an iphone SE? I don't get the hand.

GreyArcher29 wrote:

1. Completely wrong.

There is no Recent Calls Option

2. From the call list swiping left is only a delete option.

Whether or not you see a separate "Recents" tab depends on which view you've selected. In the phone app, tap the icon in the top-right corner that looks like a stack of horizontal lines. Select "Classic" to see the older version that includes the separate "Recents" tab.