If your loved one has blocked you from calling or texting them, you might wonder about what other privileges you may still have. Chances are, you both previously had your location sharing turned on. Or you’re still looking for ways to track them without overstepping. Blocking doesn’t always mean you’ve been entirely shut out. This article will answer any questions you have and more.
What happens when someone blocks you?
The extent of your connection with your loved ones depends on where they may have blocked you. If they blocked your phone number, you may not be able to call or text them. Typically, when you try to call, your calls would go straight to voicemail or ring endlessly. When you text, your messages may show as sent but not delivered, or they may fail to send. And if you are blocked on WhatsApp, you may no longer see their posts, online status, “last seen,” profile updates, stories, and more.
Can you still see their location after being blocked?
The short answer is always No. However, your loss of access to real-time interaction with them depends on how you shared your location with them. Here’s a breakdown of what typically happens.
On Apple Find My/iMessage
If both of you use iOS and have previously set up location sharing, blocking your phone number in Contacts does not immediately remove access. The only way they can block you from seeing their location data is if they block or stop sharing their location within the app. So, you can still check if you’ve been blocked by:
- Open the Family Find My app on your iPhone or iPad.
- Go to the people tab. If you can still see their name there, you haven’t been blocked yet.
- Once they’ve blocked you, their name automatically disappears from your “People” tab.
On Google Maps or Find Hub
On Google Find Hub (formerly Google Find My Device), Android users can set up location sharing with their loved ones. However, once they’ve blocked your access, you will no longer see their name on your location sharing list. This means that you can’t also see their location.
Google Maps is slightly different. You can set up Google Maps to track two smartphone users, provided they both have Google accounts enabled on their devices. That said, once your loved one blocks your phone number and Google access, location sharing will stop.
- To view this, navigate to your profile avatar and then select location sharing. If they are still sharing with you, you’ll see their name at the bottom of the screen right away.
- If not, you’ll see the “not sharing location” message alongside the button to “Request” it again.
On the Messengers App
More recently, many social media and messaging apps have enabled users to share their live locations with loved ones. However, when it comes to restricting location sharing, there are slight differences to be expected.
On WhatsApp, your loved ones can choose to share their location for 15 minutes, 1 hour, or 8 hours. From the outset, you don’t have unrestricted access. That said, if they’ve blocked you before the location sharing expired, you won’t be able to see their current location. Here’s how to check:
- Click the pin they used to share their location before.
- If it’s no longer being shared, you will instantly see “live location ended” at the bottom of the pin they shared.
Snapchat
Snapchat is slightly different but still follows the same scenario. Often, people who want to share their location with you would add you to their list of friends. When they remove you from their friends list, you won’t see their Bitmoji on your Snap Map again. Hence, you’ll no longer be able to tell if they are online alongside their live location.
If someone has blocked you from sending messages on Facebook Messenger, the platform will make it appear as though the person no longer uses Messenger. But the bottom line is that you won’t be able to send them a message on the platform or see their location. Your Messenger interface will only appear to show that you’re sharing your own location, but you won’t be able to see theirs. That said, if they only stopped sharing their location with you, you’ll see the message “location sharing ended.”
On family tracking apps
It’s also possible for your loved ones to block you on family tracking apps. However, this doesn’t happen automatically when they block your phone number or text messages. If they only blocked your phone number via their device settings, you would still see their location within that specific app. That said, once they block you within the app, you will receive a notification. Here are other ways you can know if they’ve blocked you within the family tracking app:
- If you were previously added to their Circle or Group, you would be immediately removed from it, and their location would vanish from their view.
- If they were previously added to your Circle or Group, you will no longer see them within your Circle or list.
- For young children, you might receive a notification about their attempts to block your access. Typically, only the admin (parent or guardian) has the power to cut all sharing ties, including location, completely.
What if they just stop sharing location without blocking you?
It’s quite possible for someone to stop sharing their location without blocking you. The most common reason is losing network or internet access. It can also happen when they turn off their location services. That said, there are a few signs that differentiate between being manually blocked and if it’s something they couldn’t control. Here are some distinctions between these two scenarios:
- Persistent messaging: If they simply stop sharing but don’t block you, you might see a persistent message, such as “Location Not Available,” “Location Sharing Paused,” or “Can’t See Location,” specifically within apps like WhatsApp, Life360, Find My, or Google Maps.
- No disappearance: unlike blocking, you won’t be removed from their contacts or friends list, and they won’t be removed from yours. So, you’ll still see their profile picture or name on the map.
- Communication is still possible: You’ll still be able to send them messages, call, and see their profile updates on social media.
- Last known location: Some apps, such as Apple Find My, may display the area they had just visited before they stopped sharing.
How to track location after being blocked?
If you’ve realized that they’ve entirely blocked you from tracking their location, you can still leverage stealth apps that allow you to reconnect with them. LocatePhone helps you re-establish tracking your loved one’s whereabouts, no matter where they are. This web app combines family and business tracking to help you access accurate and current location updates. Once they accept your location request (sent via the web-based solution), you’ll see their complete geolocation data on a map, which works discreetly within their phone without requiring any additional prompts from them. Here’s how it works:
- Aller à Localiser le téléphone and enter their phone number.
- Cliquez sur le bouton « Localiser ».
- Attendez que le suivi commence.
- Enter your email address to create your account and activate tracking requests.
FAQ
How to tell if you’ve been blocked on your iPhone?
When someone’s blocked you on iPhone, your messages within iMessage will remain blue colored and stay “delivered” but never “Read”. Your calls will go straight to voicemail every time. If you tried FaceTime, it would fail immediately or ring once before going to voicemail.
Does location not available mean they blocked you?
No, “Emplacement non disponible” usually means that they have manually paused sharing within the location-sharing app. Other instances could be if their device is offline, turned off, or in Airplane Mode. It can also happen if they lose internet access.
Will iMessage deliver if blocked?
No, your iMessages won’t deliver if you’ve been blocked. Your messages will remain blued coded instead of switching to green. Additionally, the messages would display as “Delivered,” but they would never update to “Read,” which indicates when the recipient has viewed them.
Can you still see someone’s location if their phone is off?
If someone’s location has been turned off, you may still see their location, but it will show as “last known location” alongside the period (e.g., seen last 2 hours ago). On apps like Find My or Life360, it may appear as a gray dot with the text “offline” or “No location found.”
Conclusion
Now, you can easily tell the different signs that someone has blocked you from calling, texting, or seeing their location data. Remember, the signs for when you’ve been blocked are different from scenarios where they simply lost access to location sharing. However, if you still want to maintain your location tracing with them, try a third-party tool like LocatePhone.
