iPhone issue my elderly mother is having- looking for help

[ayedubya]

Hi I'm based in Glasgow my 74 year old mother is 4 hours north telling me she thinks she needs a new phone because of a texting issue(!)

So in August last year she changed contracts from o2 to Sky. So she got a new sim. I sent the PUK code to Sky so that her old number would be ported over. I couldn't stay over due to covid so told her to follow the instructions she'd receive via text messages, to restart phone etc.

Her WhatsApp messages are fine for me when she sends them. But when she sends a WhatsApp message to my in-law's in USA it comes up as an unknown number (the number I presume she was given by Sky)

When she sends me an iMessage it comes up as that unknown number.

I'm guessing this unknown number was the number that came with her contract. So I wasn't sure if her number was ported over properly. I asked her to call her mobile (dialling her original number, the one she wanted ported over) from a land line and her iPhone rings... so her number has been ported over, and also her contract bill has her ported number at the top. So I asked her to go to iPhone's settings and check her contact details. There is has her apple ID email and the new number that was on her sim.

What should I get her to do? Manually change that number in settings to her original number she had ported over? I think this issue is causing problems when she sends normal text messages to non iMessage users/android people.

Any help appreciated... As currently I have to get my dad on facetime to hold his old iPhone over hers so I can see what's on screen.

One of the best tests of self-control is helping elderly family members with technology!

Thanks for reading

[Gary29]

I'm only thinking out loud here, so don't shoot me down, but on iphones, the phone number gets tied into the settings of the phone, I recently changed provider and remember similar things happening when I switched sims.

If you ask her to look at Settings > Phone > My number I would guess that the number there is the original one from the new sim, you can manually change it, so that would be worth a try I think.

Edited by Gary29 on Wednesday 6th January 09:12

[ayedubya]

Gary29 said:

I'm only thinking out loud here, so don't shoot me down, but on iphones, the phone number gets tied into the settings of the phone, I recently changed provider and remember similar things happening when I switched sims.

If you ask her to look at Settings > Phone > My number I would guess that the number there is the original one from the new sim, you can manually change it, so that would be worth a try I think.

Edited by Gary29 on Wednesday 6th January 09:12

thanks.. i have taken screenshots and asked her to check it has her old number there.

[Ham_and_Jam]

^^^^This

iOS uses the number in your settings for most apps, rather than the sim.

[ayedubya]

Thanks all, I am just thinking she will need to also change the number in Settings>Apple ID>Name, Phone Numbers, Email section as that def shows her new number, not the number she had ported over, I think that is why iMessage is coming up as her unknown number.

[colin79666]

ayedubya said:

Thanks all, I am just thinking she will need to also change the number in Settings>Apple ID>Name, Phone Numbers, Email section as that def shows her new number, not the number she had ported over, I think that is why iMessage is coming up as her unknown number.

Yes. May also need to turn iMessage off, restart the phone and then turn it back on again. I had this issue when porting from three to Vodafone last year.

[ayedubya]

colin79666 said:

Yes. May also need to turn iMessage off, restart the phone and then turn it back on again. I had this issue when porting from three to Vodafone last year.

thanks a lot... will try to talk her through that

[ecsrobin]

You can also change the phone number in whatsapp in the settings so if none of that works (which I think it will) then try that.

[ayedubya]

these suggestions worked... thanks a mill.

changed in settings > phone > number... and she restarded her phone and that updated her imessage. whatsapp was already fine.

cheers again