iPhone users can’t respond
Numerous iPhone users on Reddit are reporting that text messages they receive from Android or Google Voice users have an additional “+” at the beginning of their phone number. This causes the Messages app to classify the number as international and split the chat into a separate conversation. Because, due to the wrong number, iPhone users cannot reply to the text because the message cannot be forwarded.
The issue primarily affects iPhone users on AT&T’s (Telecommunications company) US network and does not appear to be related to any Android device. It’s possible that the error is due to a backend issue on the AT&T side. Apple has also rolled out iOS 16.5 for all iPhones, but it’s highly unlikely that this update will cause this error.