Control message storage & access (2024)

With your permission, some Google and third-party apps can access your messages to provide companion experiences like when you restore messages to a new phone or app, or when you send message notifications to your home device, smartwatch, or car.

When you receive end-to-end encrypted messages, they’re also included in Android backup and accessible to apps you’ve granted SMS or notifications permissions to. You can manage and update which apps can access your messages.

Manage & control access to your messages

View or disable SMS permissions on your downloaded apps

Learn how to change app permissions on your Android phone.

For Google Pixel devices:

  1. Open your phone’s Settings Control message storage & access (1).
  2. Tap Apps & notifications Control message storage & access (2)Advanced Control message storage & access (3)Permission managerControl message storage & access (4)SMS.
    1. If you allowed or denied any permissions for apps, you’ll find them here.
  3. Tap an app to change its permissions Control message storage & access (5)Allow or Deny.
  4. Repeat these steps for every app.

View and disable notification access on your downloaded apps

Learn how to control notification access on your Android phone.

For Google Pixel devices:

  1. Open your phone’s SettingsControl message storage & access (6).
  2. Tap Apps & notificationsControl message storage & access (7) Advanced Control message storage & access (8)Special app access Control message storage & access (9)Notification access.

If you allowed or denied any notifications for apps, you’ll find them here.

  1. Tap an app to change its notification access.
  2. Turn Allow notification accesson or off.
  3. Repeat these steps for every app.

View or disable Android backup

When backup is on, your messages are automatically stored.

  1. Open your phone’s Settings Control message storage & access (10).
  2. Tap System Control message storage & access (11)Backup.
    1. If you allowed or denied any permissions for apps, you’ll find them here.
  3. Tap an app to change its permissions Control message storage & access (12)Allow or Deny.
  4. Repeat these steps for every app.

Tip: If you remove app access for SMS permissions or notifications, some experiences may break. This may include Google auto-fill of one-time passwords, or when you send and receive messages from smart watches, home devices, or cars.

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Control message storage & access (2024)

FAQs

How do I fix an incoming message rejected? ›

1 Answer
  1. Remove apps you no longer need. This is the fastest solution, as it will certainly reclaim larger amounts of space per single step. ...
  2. Move apps to your sd card. This option is available with Android 2.2 and higher, but doesn't work with all apps. ...
  3. Cleaning up caches. ...
  4. Clear history.
Dec 22, 2012

Should I turn off RCS? ›

Even though RCS improves the texting experience, it might not be the preferred solution for everyone. You may want to turn it off if you decide RCS isn't for you. If you have issues with the connection, turning off the setting and reactivating it might be a good reason to do so.

What does it mean when a message is rejected? ›

When the message delivery status is displayed as “Rejected”, it means that the messages are not delivered by the carriers due to Number Blockage or Velocity Block of Numbers. Most carriers prefer to use regulations to control the flow of spam.

How do I retrieve rejected text messages on Android? ›

What Are My Options for Recovering Deleted Texts on Android?
  1. Open the Messages app on your phone,
  2. Tap the three-dot menu in the upper-right corner,
  3. Select Archived,
  4. Long tap the message you want to recover,
  5. Tap the up-arrow icon at the top.
  6. If you activated Google Drive backup, you will find the deleted messages.
Mar 20, 2024

Does clearing message storage delete messages? ›

Clearing Cache on your Android/IOS doesn't affect your Facebook/Instagram Messages. However, it might, I repeat might affect your Whatsapp/Viber or any End to End encrypted messaging app. Since those messages are stored on your device, erasing your cache partition might delete your messages too.

What does clear storage on messages mean? ›

Clear Storage is an app feature that will allow you to free up space on your devices by deleting unwanted or older files such as images, audio, and video messages sent or opened in message groups.

Why does my phone keep saying not enough storage space? ›

If you're seeing an "Insufficient storage available" message on your Android, chances are that you've used up most of your device's available memory. To fix this, you'll need to make some space by deleting apps and/or media; you can also add external storage, such as a Micro SD card, to your phone.

How can you tell if someone is using RCS messaging? ›

How do I know if I'm talking to someone with RCS? If your conversation's compose bar displays “RCS message," your messages are sent with Rich Communication Services (RCS).

What is RCS hack? ›

One of the vulnerabilities discovered was an RCS messaging flaw that enabled hackers to access a user's device by sending a malicious file through Multimedia Messaging Service (MMS). This enabled the attacker to take control of the recipient's device.

Is RCS good or bad? ›

RCS uses internet data to send content, so it can be encrypted too, making your conversations more secure. Finally, the standard is also better at blocking spam — at least in theory. RCS builds upon the default SMS experience with support for media, read receipts, and encryption.

Can I receive messages if my storage is full? ›

In most cases yes. Most Telco's have a Time to Live (TTL) or retry attempts of 24 hour duration. A message delivery will be attempted for that duration, if phone memory is cleared then the message will be delivered else it will be dropped undelivered after 24 hours.

How do I change my message storage? ›

Manage & control access to your messages
  1. Open your phone's Settings .
  2. Tap Apps & notifications Advanced Permission manager. SMS. If you allowed or denied any permissions for apps, you'll find them here.
  3. Tap an app to change its permissions. Allow or Deny.
  4. Repeat these steps for every app.

How do I clear my SIM SMS storage? ›

To delete SIM card messages on your Android phone, you can follow these steps:
  1. Open the messaging app on your Android phone.
  2. Look for the menu icon, which is usually represented by three dots or lines, and tap on it.
  3. In the menu options, search for "SIM card messages" or "SIM card settings" [1].

How do I change the reject call message on my Android? ›

Android
  1. To Enable: Tap on the Phone app. Click “Call Settings” and then “All Calls” and then “Auto-Reject”. Turn auto-reject on.
  2. To Customize Messages: Click “Phone” and then “Settings” and then “Call Settings” Then tap “Call rejection“ Then click “Rejection messages“
Jan 25, 2024

Why are my incoming texts blocked? ›

The recipient's mobile carrier sometimes blocks these messages based on spam identification, lack of personalization and suspicious URL links. If you're experiencing these types of blockages, there are measures you can take to avoid carrier violations.

Why is my phone not accepting messages? ›

Airplane Mode or Do Not Disturb: Make sure your phone is not in Airplane Mode or Do Not Disturb mode, as these settings can prevent text messages from coming through. Storage Space: If your device's internal storage is full, it may impact the functioning of apps, including the messaging app.

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