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How to disable iPhone lock screen pop-up messages or ads

how to disable iphone lock screen pop up messages

Your iPhone has a feature that can be abused by network providers and advertisement companies to send you unwanted SMS pop-up adverts. Such lock screen pop-ups can keep your lock screen awake, and drain your battery. This post will explain how to disable them.

how to disable iphone lock screen pop up messages
iPhone lock screen adds showing on an iPhone

Find iPhone lock screen message notifications settings

To find iPhone lock screen alerts, click “iPhone Settings”, “Notifications”, scroll down, and select “Messages”.

how to find the iphone messaging app under notifications setting
Finding the messaging app under iPhone notifications settings

How to disable message (SMS) notifications on the lock screen

This is the Messaging (SMS) feature that is usually misused by Network Providers and Advertisers. They use it to send ads directly to your lock screen in a way that you cannot access your iPhone without interacting with the advert. If you turn off this setting, then the iPhone’s messaging app can no longer display messages or ads on your lock screen. In other words, you have completely disabled your iPhone lock screen pop-up messages/ads.

how to toggle off lock screen message (sms) alerts
How to toggle off land disable lock screen Message (SMS) alerts on iPhone

To disable lock screen pop-up alerts, click “iPhone Settings”, “Notifications”, scroll down and select “Messages” then “toggle off” your iPhone’s Lock Screen Message Alerts.

Other usefull SMS alert settings

Completely disable iPhone message (SMS) notifications

To completely disable SMS alerts, click “iPhone Settings”, “Notifications”, scroll down and select “Messages” then “toggle off” the “Allow Notifications” setting.

how to completely disable sms alerts
Toggle off “Allow Notifications” to completely disable SMS alerts

That will completely disable all your iPhone SMS alerts. Meaning that, if you receive any SMS, you would not be notified at all. It’s effective at stopping lock screen pop-up messages, but it may not be convenient for most people because they could miss important messages.

How to disable SMS alerts in your iPhone Notifications Center

The iPhone Notifications Center is the menu that appears when you swipe up on your lock screen. The Notifications Center displays all of your missed or unattended notifications. If you turn off SMS Alerts in the Notifications Center, then your new SMS would no longer be featured here whenever you receive a new text message.

how to disable SMS alerts on iphone notifications center
How to disable SMS alerts on iPhone Notifications Center

To disable SMS banner alerts, click “iPhone Settings”, “Notifications”, scroll down and select “Messages” then “toggle off” the “Notifications Center” setting.

How to disable iPhone message/SMS banner alerts

Banners are the type of notifications that are displayed at the very top of your iPhone’s display. If toggled off, then SMS alerts would no longer be displayed as banners whenever you receive a new text message.

How to disable iPhone SMS banner alerts
Toggle off “Banners” to disable iPhone SMS banner alerts

To disable SMS banner alerts, click “iPhone Settings”, “Notifications”, scroll down and select “Messages” then “toggle off” the “Banners” setting.

How to modify SMS banner alerts style (Temporary, or Persistent banners)

To modify SMS banner alerts, click “iPhone Settings”, “Notifications”, scroll down and select “Messages” then click “Banner Style”.

iPhone messages banner styles
iPhone messages banner styles (Temporary/Persistent)

There are two main settings in this sub-menu. Temporary and Persistent. Temporary banners appear at the top of your display for a few seconds and then fade away. Persistent banners will stay at the top of your iPhone screen until your swipe them off.

How to modify SMS alert sounds and vibration settings

To modify the SMS alert sound type, click “iPhone Settings”, “Notifications”, scroll down and select “Messages” then click “Sounds”.

how to modify iphone sms alert sounds and vibration settings
How to change iPhone SMS alert sounds and vibration settings

In this sub-menu, you can change your SMS alert sound or completely turn it off. There are also options to change your iPhone’s SMS alert vibration pattern or to completely turn it off.

How to enable/disable iPhone message/SMS badges

Badges are the red circles with numbers that show up on your messaging app’s icons, to reveal the number of unread messages that you have. Here’s how to enable or disable your iPhone’s messaging app’s badges.

This is what an iPhone message badge looks like
This is what an iPhone message badge looks like

To enable/disable SMS banner alerts, click “iPhone Settings”, “Notifications”, scroll down and select “Messages” then “toggle on/off” the “Badges” setting.

How to enable/disable iPhone SMS previews

By default, the messaging app on your iPhone will hide your SMS previews whenever it detects that your iPhone is locked. But you may want to change this setting so that your messaging app never shows a preview or always shows a preview of your SMS alerts. Here’s how to do it.

To enable/disable SMS alert previews, click “iPhone Settings”, “Notifications”, scroll down and select “Messages” then click the “Show Previews” setting. There are three options in this sub-menu.

how to disable or enable iphone sms previews
How to disable or enable iPhone SMS previews
  1. “Always”. This setting will make your iPhone always show a preview of your SMS notifications.
  2. “When Unlocked”. This setting will make your iPhone only show a preview of your SMS notifications when the phone is unlocked. That means there will be no previews of yoru SMS alerts while if your iPhone is locked.
  3. “Never”. This setting will never let your iPhone show a preview of your SMS notifications, whether your phone is locked or unlocked.

How to enable/disable iPhone SMS alerts repeat

To enable/disable SMS repeat alerts, click “iPhone Settings”, “Notifications”, scroll down and select “Messages” then click “Customize Notifications” In this menu, click “Repeat Alerts”. Here, you can set how many times your iPhone’s messaging app repeats its alerts.

how to disable iPhone SMS alerts repeat
How to disable iPhone SMS alerts repeat

How to disable iPhone SMS alerts from unknown senders

To enable/disable SMS alerts from unknown senders, click “iPhone Settings”, “Notifications”, scroll down and select “Messages” then click “Customize Notifications” In this menu, click “toggle on/off” the “Unknown Senders” setting.

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