How to Manage the Blacklist

Viewing the Blacklist

Navigate to ** Campaigns > Blacklist** in the left sidebar. The page lists every Contact record in your company where blocked = true. You must be a superuser with the suppression_list permission to access it. Without that permission the page returns a permission error.

The index displays columns for Created At, Blocked At, Name, and Block / Unblock Logs. A fulltext search box accepts phone numbers in the format +17191231234, and a per-page selector controls how many rows are shown.

Five action links live at the top of the page:

• View Blacklist (/contacts/): the index you are already on.
• Upload Blacklist (/contact_imports/new): bulk import a CSV of numbers to block.
• Blacklist Files (/contact_imports/): the history of previous uploads and their processing status.
• Export Blacklist (/data_exports/new?data_type=contact): download the current blacklist as a file.
• Clear Blacklist (/unblock_contact_jobs/): create and manage jobs that unblock numbers in bulk.

Opening an individual Contact at /contacts/:id shows a read-only detail view with the number, creation time, blocked status, country, and time zone. Block and unblock controls do not live on this page.

Adding a Number to the Blacklist

There is no direct "block this number" button on the blacklist index itself. Blocks are applied through one of the following paths:

1. From a call detail page. When editing any call, the call action buttons include a Block Caller icon (gated by the Call:block permission). Clicking it flips Contact.blocked for the caller's number. If the caller is already blocked, the same button reads Unblock Caller.
2. Through the API. POST /api/v1/contacts/:caller_id/caller_block blocks a caller by phone number; POST /api/v1/contacts/:caller_id/caller_unblock reverses it.
3. Through a bulk upload. In the Blacklist Tab use the Upload Blacklist Tab to import a CSV File or text of numbers. /contact_imports/new.
4. Automatically when a lead or call triggers a schedule action or manual action that applies a block.

Every block and unblock creates a block log entry recording the user, the collaborator, the source call or lead, and the request IP. This audit trail is permanent.

Removing a Number from the Blacklist

Unblocks use the same paths as blocks: the call detail page toggle, the API, or a bulk Clear Blacklist job at /unblock_contact_jobs/. An unblock sets blocked = false and records a block log entry with the blocked_cleared_at timestamp. The Contact record itself is not deleted. Contact records are retained indefinitely so that their counters, opt-out history, and block history remain intact.

What the Blacklist Blocks

Once a Contact is blocked for your company, the platform restricts to dial that number on outbound calls, restricts to match it to offers on inbound calls, and restricts to send SMS to it. The enforcement is cached briefly for performance: Contact.blocked_by_company? wraps a 15 second, so it take effect within seconds rather than instantly.