In the past, SMS was considered dead; now, RCS should take its crown. This latest iteration of messaging systems promised that the user experience would be richer and more interactive, with read receipts, greater-res photos, or messages longer than 160 characters. But with all this advancement in technology, a problem has arisen: folks have found out that the new RCS platform is the place to be for spammers. That raises the curious question: How ever has our shining new toy turned into a spam center? And more importantly, how can you safeguard yourself against this soaring height of RCS spam? Let’s get started.
Why RCS Spam Messages are Increasing
There was an immediate change in the messaging landscape when Google integrated RCS into Android Messages as the default messaging app in 2019. This was just the first step in a greater push by Google to push RCS as the new standard. It worked fast: Apple even caved, announcing RCS support for iOS 18 and above now.
The embrace of Android and iOS by RCS led to a user explosion. By 2025, an astounding number of 1.5 billion users were actively engaged, with an enormous 3+ billion estimated to be on the horizon by 2028.
Then came Google, with the grace of a revamp, promoting the RCS Business Messaging (RBM) framework. It is as if there is a direct line to your favorite brands, not through cluttered emails but through bright, interactive messages within your chat app. Suddenly, businesses, big and small, had all the money to be made-from appointment reminders that almost do themselves, to customer support that really felt human, and yes, ad placements that felt nothing like ads. It was a revolution in chat, and everyone wanted to get on board.
The RCS targeted to be the savior of texting is now fast becoming a spammer’s paradise. Third-party platforms, due to the unrelaxed rules, are flinging open the doors for unwelcome nudges. Before you know it, your inbox could be a playground for shady senders. Here’s the kicker: RCS is logical, and data is money-a spammer could send thousands of messages at near zero cost. If carriers and Google do not equip themselves with formidable spam-fighting tech, brace yourself for a full-blown inbox invasion.
Make Sure Spam Protection is Enabled
Abuse spam texting much, Google Messages stands as your mighty digital sword with its amazing anti-spam filter. It is not a trivial simple blocklist; instead, it performs three actions at once–identifying the sender, using on-device AI to weed out phishing attempts, in-your-face promotions, and blatant fraud, and closes down the complaints that follow. Your inbox is well taken care of.
Time to get your spam effects apart! Set the spam protection and allow the (anonymous) Google shield to pin napalm on those digital daggers. Here’s a short version of the big manual to building your defenses:
- Profile PowerUp: Tap your profile picture, nestled in the topright corner.
- Message Central: Dive intoMessages settings.
- General Orders: Navigate toGeneral, your control panel.
- Shields Up: ClickProtection & Safety.
- Spam Assassin Activated: ToggleEnable spam protectionto ON. Victory!
Block and Report Spam
Spam messages annoy you? With just a block and a report in Google Messages, you are actually teaching the Google spam-fighting AI besides cleaning up your inbox. Any time something gets reported, the filters are made a little better, so when enough flags go up, the filters are fine-tuned to block the sender completely, so no one should have to deal with junk anymore. Community-selected spam protection!
Drowning in spam? Fight back! Each spam report you file is one more strike against the junk clogging up everyone’s inbox. Whether it’s a shady business or just too many ads from companies you know, reporting them allows us to catch a short breath. Be a spam-fighting hero!
Does spam get you down? Fight back! Just tap the suspicious message, hit its three-dot icon on top, and select “Block & report spam.” Tap once for “Report spam,” then tap “Yes” to finish.
Disable Read Receipt
Read receipts for RCS: a double-edged sword. What an odd satisfaction in knowing there is a “read” ogle made on your message by the recipient, but that “read” confirmation can be plenty worse as chum in the water for spammers. Companies keep track of those opens, and if you ever act on any of their ads through reading, then prepare to be drowned: your interest qualifies you for target status on their lists.
Silence the Spam: Mute Read Receipts!
Spam never seemed to be such an issue before. Just pull the plug on the read receipts! That would be the equivalent of digital camouflage. Be warned, though: invisibility works in both directions. From now on, the senders shall be living in the bliss of uncertainty, wondering if their message was truly seen. What a choice!
In theMessage settings, go toGeneral->RCS chatsand disable theSend read receiptsoption.
Disable RCS Chat
Why not admit it: getting junk mail at a mailbox you never seem to use-well, that’s RCS spam for many. In irony, a huge mass blocks the whole Google Messages route nowadays in favor of WhatsApp, Telegram, Signal, or whatever else, but even then, RCS spam notices bear so much on them. It’s like paying for that feature you are outright avoiding only to find it annoying with unwanted solicitations.
Having spam cluttering your Messages from Google? Unplug! Disable your RCS chat and reclaim your inbox. Your text will flow through SMS on your end, with the other person returning to SMS/MMS when sending texts to you. And those vital business alerts won’t go astray, as they would fall back to SMS if needed. Why not stay connected while saying goodbye to spam?
Goodbye to RCS chats is but a pleasant chore at hand! Simply go to yourMessages settings; under theGeneralsection, search forRCS chats. And behold theTurn on RCS chatstoggle button? Tap that to turn it off! A popup confirmation will appear. Just tapTurn Offto mark it permanent. RCS chats are henceforth disabled!
RCS is omnipresent, being preinstalled on the Android and iOS operating systems-that are, after all, the twinTitans of the smartphone world. Dont think though, that confiscation may occur! Spams still manage to sneak in. Feeling the heat? You can go ahead and deactivate RCS completely. Time to part ways with RCS chat? Check out these apps and get your communications back in your control.
Thanks for reading Are You Receiving More RCS Spam Messages? Protect Yourself Now
