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Millions of mobiles finally receive important new button that stops most annoying text feature – how to switch it on

It's a straightforward fix

SPAM messages are becoming increasingly common for phone users nowadays - but a new feature is set to solve that problem.

A new button is being introduced by Google messages to enable phone users to stop receiving unwanted SMS texts or RCS chats.

Screenshot of Google Messages interface showing an unsubscribe button and options to send text, emojis, images, and audio messages.
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The 'Unsubscribe' option will appear on messages deemed spam on Google MessagesCredit: www.9to5google.com

This function has been built into the Google Messages app as a tool to make it easier for people to stop receiving automated texts that often come as spam.

It involves an "unsubscribe" button for Google messages that may be promotions or other "non-essential content".

The new feature can appear at the bottom of the chat, just above the text field, or in the conversation's overflow menu if it seems like spam.

An option to "unsubscribe to stop receiving messages" becomes available for RCS business messages for those in the UK, US, Brazil, France, Germany, india, Mexico, and Spain.

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Just tap on this button and you can start the process of receiving messages from that particular sender.

A short list of reasons will then appear as why you are unsubscribing.

It includes selections like: "Not signed up", "Too many messages", "No longer interested", "Spam", and "Other".

When the "Spam" option is clicked, it will then provide a "Report this sender" button.

From this, Google Messages tells the sender to "STOP" sending messages to your number, and a notice saying "you should no longer receive non-essential messages from that sender" appears.

Essential and requested messages can still be received from the sender after unsubscribing.

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This includes one-time passwords or boarding passes requested from the business, or confirmation of the unsubscribe request with information to further manage communication preferences from them.

A business may also be unable to comply with unsubscribe requests, and will subsequently redirect you to account settings to change message notifications throughout you account.

You can go to the overflow menu if you want to resubscribe to the sender's messages.

The button should not be used interchangeably with blocking, as Google Messages does not yet detect spam automatically.

The new button is also for the Google Messages app specifically, so does not apply to the regular messages app that comes on Samsung or iPhone devices.

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