I’ve Been Stuck in a Stranger’s Group Text But May Have Found a Way Out

I've never approached technology with resistance. But I have, at times, wondered if I would catch up and STAY caught up.

And I have. No worries there.

But with all the wonders and convenience of technology comes the ANNOYANCES of technology--specifically, how certain people (who shall remain nameless because I don't KNOW their names) take advantage of it in order to behave badly.

Get our free mobile app

Phone scams are rampant. Phishing emails have never been more frequent. SPAM is no longer just a questionable breakfast entree.

And now, a NEW issue that I've been encountering with more regularity the last couple of months--group texts from complete strangers.

I'm currently part of a thread that includes 19 other people and we're all getting messages that are completely random. Honestly, I don't remember off the top of my head what they say because I delete them as quickly as I possibly can.

But others "stuck" in this group text are starting to respond angrily. "Get me out of this thread" and the angry emoji have been the most common retorts. Yeah, I doubt an EMOJI is going to have any effect on someone who's playing this kind of prank.

But it IS driving me crazy. And since I ALSO get phishing texts of varying levels of taste from unknown sources, I don't respond to THIS one. Whoever the loser is who's doing this obviously doesn't care what anyone's reaction will be so I don't want to agitate the perpetrator.

But I did go into my Messages settings, clicked "block numbers and messages," and blocked every number in the group. Hopefully, that will work. Since I haven't gotten one in hours (and that's actually a long gap, considering how often I had been receiving them), I'm thinking maybe it did.

Please be careful. It's obvious there are those who don't mind taking advantage of others--or at least attempting to--as a way to have fun.