Unknown senders no longer silenced after iOS 26 update

Before updating to iOS 26, I had my Messages set to filter unknown numbers/spam into the “Unknown Senders” tab. This kept things organized and silenced those texts completely — I’d only see them if I opened that folder.

After updating, I noticed that option is gone. The messages still go to “Unknown Senders,” but I now get notifications for every single one. I receive 30–50 spam texts a day (mostly political clickbait from random numbers 😩), and it’s driving me crazy.

Has anyone else had this issue or found a way to silence notifications from unknown senders again? Maybe the setting moved or was removed? Any help or advice would be greatly appreciated!