Can't block easily caller on iPhone SE after iOS 26.3 update

Hello, I have just updated my SE iPhone with iOS version 26.3.

I do not find the button used since yesterday to block a call from a specific new number, probably spam ... before the last sw update I easily found this option in the lower part of the missed call screen, just press on "block this caller" and the job were done. Easy.


Now, apparently I should add the caller (a spammer) to my contacts and then block it.

Hope this is a bug, otherwise that would be crazy ... !

Anyone else had a similar experience?

Thanks and regards.

Pierpaolo

iPhone SE, iOS 26

Posted on Feb 20, 2026 2:47 AM

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Question marked as Top-ranking reply

Posted on Feb 20, 2026 8:16 AM

pierpaolo131 wrote:

I tried in both views to find the button, the behaviour of the phone is exactly the same, no differnces

There have been other threads on this as well and one person contacted Apple Support who acknowledged this is an issue which will need to be resolved on the Apple side. Until then, you'll need to save the call as a contact, then you can block the number and then delete the contact. Extra steps for sure, but until it's addressed on the Apple side, that may be your best solution.


To make sure this issue is still on Apple's radar, use this link to provide feedback to Apple directly --> https://www.apple.com/feedback/iphone/


22 replies
Question marked as Top-ranking reply

Feb 20, 2026 8:16 AM in response to pierpaolo131

pierpaolo131 wrote:

I tried in both views to find the button, the behaviour of the phone is exactly the same, no differnces

There have been other threads on this as well and one person contacted Apple Support who acknowledged this is an issue which will need to be resolved on the Apple side. Until then, you'll need to save the call as a contact, then you can block the number and then delete the contact. Extra steps for sure, but until it's addressed on the Apple side, that may be your best solution.


To make sure this issue is still on Apple's radar, use this link to provide feedback to Apple directly --> https://www.apple.com/feedback/iphone/


Apr 9, 2026 12:07 PM in response to lobsterghost1

I posted this on another thread but it keeps getting deleted and edited for reasons that are not clear to me.


In summation:


  • The issue


Share Contact, Add to Favorites, Add to List, Add to Emergency Contact, Block Contact/Block Caller and other options/information will not appear/render when you select the "i" (information) icon on the recent calls list in either the Classic or Unified views. This issue seems to affect mainly iPhone SE models, and I have confirmed the issue exists on my iPhone SE 1, 2, and 3 that are on the T-Mobile network. I have updated to iOS 26.2.1 and the issue persists. Others have posted similar issues with iPhone models that are not the SE. Although it has been mentioned that the issue may be related to specific carrier, no one has posted conclusive evidence that this is so, and it appears to be a software issue caused by iOS. A glitch if you will.


  • The workaround


  1. Hitting the i button in Classic mode, scrolling down, long press the home button for about 2 seconds or so. In Unified mode select the caller, scroll down and long press the home button.  (Works consistently on the first try)
  2. Hitting the home button repeatedly after selecting the i icon. (Works intermittently)
  3. Closing the phone app after selecting the i icon by double clicking the Home button and swiping up on the Phone app and reopening the phone app. (Works intermittently and usually takes at least two attempts)
  4. Waiting several seconds for the options to render. (Works intermittently and is the least reliable of the options)
  5. Scrolling up a few times, like refreshing a window, will force the screen to render the missing options. (Works intermittently but is faster and less of hassle than pushing the home button)
  6. Every once in a while, the Block option will just pop up as it's supposed to. Holding down the home button is way less annoying than going in and out of the Phone app repeatedly to get the options to appear.


  • The white hand in the orange circle mystery


In Classic mode on my iPhone SE 3 I toggled between All and Missed in the recent calls list and when I swiped far left, I finally saw the white hand in the orange circle to block numbers. It only appeared with phone numbers that were not on my contact list or did not have a caller identification related to them. In Unified mode it also only appears on the phone numbers that are not on my contact list. This method did not work on my iPhone SE 2, and I did not try on the SE 1.


If anyone eventually finds a real fix and not a work around, please post and thank you in advance for your much needed help.

Feb 20, 2026 10:59 AM in response to LD150

LD150 wrote:

To add to the accumulated knowledge, I noticed that If I use the Phone app Recents on my iPad 10 I can get the Block Contact button immediately even though I cannot do that with my iphone SE Phone app

My SE 2020 experience as well, and it started with 26.2 and was not fixed in 26.3. All the forums reports I've see of this where the iPhone model was identified are limited to SE 2 and 3.

Feb 20, 2026 7:19 AM in response to pierpaolo131

Hello Tim, thanks for you support.

That is the problem ... in none of the two lists "block caller" is available, I simply can not see it ... yes, in the previous sw version the "block caller" option was available in both call lists as you say, now it is gone ...

I think it is a bug, it is not possibile that by design the user have to insert a new contact before to block it.

Regards, Pierpaolo


Feb 20, 2026 10:43 AM in response to pierpaolo131

pierpaolo131 wrote:

I am pretty sure they did not do a good "no regression test" before release the new version ... hope they fix it quickly

There are literally thousands and thousands of people who were Beta Testing iOS 26.3 for weeks before it was released. Whether anyone noticed this is another question, but the software was not only tested by Apple but by many many people outside Apple.

Can't block easily caller on iPhone SE after iOS 26.3 update

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