The reason why your iPhone might be telling others that your notifications are silenced is due to a feature called “Silence Unknown Callers.” When this feature is enabled, your iPhone will automatically silence calls from numbers that are not in your contacts, recent calls, or Siri Suggestions. However, when a call is silenced, the caller will hear a short ringtone and then be sent to voicemail. This feature is designed to reduce the annoyance of spam or unknown callers.
In addition to calls, this feature also affects iMessage notifications. When you have “Silence Unknown Callers” enabled, and someone sends you an iMessage, a brief alert will appear in the chat indicating that your contact has silenced notifications. This alert is meant to inform the sender that you might not receive immediate notifications for their messages.
Similarly, if you use Focus mode on your iPhone, which allows you to customize how you receive notifications based on your preferences, your phone may also notify your contacts about it. This is to let them know that you are currently in a mode where you might not be available to respond to messages or calls right away.
While these notifications can be helpful in certain situations, such as letting others know that you are intentionally avoiding distractions, not everyone may find them useful or desirable. If you prefer to keep your notifications private and not inform your contacts about your settings, you can disable this feature.
To turn off the notifications that inform others about your silenced notifications or Focus mode, follow these steps:
1. Open the Settings app on your iPhone.
2. Scroll down and tap on “Phone” or “Messages,” depending on the type of notification you want to disable.
3. Look for the option “Silence Unknown Callers” or “Notify When Silent” and toggle it off. This will prevent the notification from appearing in iMessage chats or when you silence unknown callers.
4. If you want to disable notifications related to Focus mode, go back to the main Settings screen and tap on “Focus” or “Do Not Disturb.”
5. Select the specific Focus mode you’re using or tap on “Customize” to modify an existing mode.
6. Scroll down to the “Notifications” section and toggle off the option that says “Allow Notifications on Lock Screen” or any similar setting that mentions displaying notifications while in Focus mode.
7. Repeat these steps for any other Focus modes you want to adjust.
By following these steps, you can prevent your iPhone from informing others about your silenced notifications or Focus mode. This way, you can maintain your privacy and avoid unnecessary notifications for your contacts.