imessage logoApple is working with major mobile carriers in China on exploring ways to reduce iMessage spam, according to state media (via Reuters).

The company is actively exploring ways to further cut spam messages, including using advanced technology to identify junk messages and rolling out more tools to block hostile accounts, an Apple official was quoted as saying by the China News Service.

"We've been working to reduce the issue of spam for quite some time," an Apple spokeswoman told Reuters in an email.

She declined to comment on the China News Service report that it was working with the country's telecom firms.

Chinese iPhone users are said to be a regular target of spam iMessages, many of which are said to promote illegal gambling websites. The reason for the influx is that Chinese telecom firms are able to filter out regular spam SMS messages by blocking keywords, but the same approach isn't possible with iMessages, which are end-to-end encrypted.

On Thursday, Chinese state media reportedly targeted Apple over the issue in a 30-minute broadside, claiming that Apple allowed illegal content like gambling apps to disseminate freely over the iMessage platform.

Apple's decision to work with mobile carriers over the issue of spam will be seen as a move to protect its privacy policies in the region, where the government has been accused of snooping on its citizens. WhatsApp and Facebook have both been blocked in China at one time or another over the use of strong encryption, which makes it difficult for the government to monitor communications.

Apple has already transferred operations of its iCloud services in China to a Chinese cloud data company. Apple made the transfer to comply with the latest laws enacted in China regarding regulations on cloud services, requiring foreign firms to store data within the country.

Apple is also currently at loggerheads with telecom regulators in India over the development of an anti-spam iPhone app, which Apple is said to have raised concerns about, owing to the privacy implications of allowing the app broad access to customers' call and text logs.

Note: Due to the political nature of the discussion regarding this topic, the discussion thread is located in our Politics, Religion, Social Issues forum. All forum members and site visitors are welcome to read and follow the thread, but posting is limited to forum members with at least 100 posts.

Tag: China

Top Rated Comments

snowboarder Avatar
93 months ago
Well, stop pretending you are here for the human rights!
Apple is here for the money, nothing else and if that means prostitution with the Chinese - so be it.
Just stop giving all those interviews about gay rights, how you care about diversity, how you care
about all those SF gay parades. You don't because you sleep with a government which puts
people to the concentration camps for a trace of the independent thinking.
Please check out the new Chinese "credit score". You will be surprised how it's easy to control
a billion and a half people society. And it seems to work.
Score: 3 Votes (Like | Disagree)
jlc1978 Avatar
93 months ago
Is there anything Apple wouldn't do to please the Chinese?
1.86Billion smartphone phone users worldwide, 626million of those are in China. Not hard to do the math...

(Thanks wormald....)
Score: 2 Votes (Like | Disagree)
DrJohnnyN Avatar
93 months ago
What iMessage spam?
Score: 2 Votes (Like | Disagree)
FFR Avatar
93 months ago
And some posters claimed no one uses iMessage. Smh
Score: 2 Votes (Like | Disagree)
FFR Avatar
93 months ago
The phone/messages setup on macOS and iOS needs a way to block a range of numbers or block non-contacts. I'm getting tons of spam calls and SMS messages from faked numbers in my area code. Somehow no spam iMessages, though.
Try this for messages.


For calls you can use the do nor disturb feature to only allow calls from your contacts.

You can block indivise numbers one at a time, I have, but not a range of numbers.
Score: 2 Votes (Like | Disagree)
snowboarder Avatar
93 months ago
Is there anything Apple wouldn't do to please the Chinese? Wait, human rights, gay rights, gay parades in SF...
Let's hope the Chinese don't discover what Tim is doing after he's back from work.
Score: 1 Votes (Like | Disagree)

Popular Stories

iOS 26

Everything New in iOS 26.1 Beta 1

Monday September 22, 2025 12:44 pm PDT by
Apple released the first beta of iOS 26.1 today, just a week after launching iOS 26. iOS 26.1 mainly adds new languages to Apple Intelligence, but there are a few other features that are worth knowing about. New Apple Intelligence Languages Apple Intelligence is now available in Danish, Dutch, Norwegian, Portuguese (Portugal), Swedish, Turkish, Chinese (Traditional), and Vietnamese. AirPo...
iPhone 17 Pro and Air Feature

Two iPhone 17 Pro and iPhone Air Colors Appear to Scratch More Easily

Friday September 19, 2025 10:02 am PDT by
As reported by Bloomberg today, some of the new iPhone 17 Pro and iPhone Air models on display at Apple Stores today are already scratched and scuffed. French blog Consomac also reported on this topic. The scratches appear to be most prominent on models with darker finishes, including the iPhone 17 Pro and Pro Max in Deep Blue, and the iPhone Air in Space Black. Images Credit: Consoma ...
apple tv 4k new orange

Next Apple TV Expected to Launch This Year With These New Features

Monday September 22, 2025 10:00 am PDT by
The next Apple TV is expected to be released later this year, and a handful of new features and changes have been rumored for the device. Below, we recap what to expect from the next Apple TV, according to rumors. Likely Features N1 Chip With Wi-Fi 7 Last year, Bloomberg's Mark Gurman said the next Apple TV would be equipped with Apple's own combined Wi-Fi and Bluetooth chip, which is...
Apple Intelligence General Feature 2

iOS 26.1 Adds New Apple Intelligence Languages and Expands AirPods Live Translation

Monday September 22, 2025 11:15 am PDT by
With iOS 26.1, Apple Intelligence is gaining support for additional languages, including Danish, Dutch, Norwegian, Portuguese (Portugal), Swedish, Turkish, Chinese (Traditional), and Vietnamese. Apple announced plans to expand the languages that can be used with Apple Intelligence last year, and now the added language support is here. Apple Intelligence is now available in the following...
Apple Foldable Thumb

Foldable iPhone Like 'Two Titanium iPhone Airs' Joined at the Hinge

Monday September 22, 2025 2:16 am PDT by
Next year's rumored foldable iPhone will showcase an ultra-thin design resembling "two titanium iPhone Airs side-by-side," according to Bloomberg's Mark Gurman. Writing in the Q&A section of his latest Power On newsletter, Gurman says Apple's first foldable device will be "super thin and a design achievement," combining Apple's thinnest iPhone form factor with cutting-edge folding...
iPhone 17 Pro and Air N1 Feature

Some iPhone 17, iPhone 17 Pro, and iPhone Air Users Experiencing Intermittent Wi-Fi Issue

Monday September 22, 2025 8:44 am PDT by
Apple's latest iPhone models launched on Friday, and some early adopters of the devices are experiencing intermittent Wi-Fi issues. Affected customers say Wi-Fi connectivity periodically cuts out on the iPhone 17, iPhone 17 Pro, iPhone 17 Pro Max, and iPhone Air, with hundreds of comments about the issue posted across the MacRumors Forums, Reddit, and the Apple Support Community over the...
iPhone 17 Pro USB C Port

iPhone 17 Pro Max's USB-C Charging Speeds Tested With Apple Chargers

Monday September 22, 2025 7:29 am PDT by
The website ChargerLAB has tested the iPhone 17 Pro Max's USB-C charging speeds with a variety of Apple's chargers, from 18W to 140W. The device reached a peak charging speed of around 36W with the following Apple chargers:40W Dynamic Power Adapter with 60W Max 61W USB-C Power Adapter 67W USB-C Power Adapter 70W USB-C Power Adapter 96W USB-C Power Adapter 140W USB-C Power AdapterFor...