Apple fixes its spammy calendar with Report Junk feature

Apple has introduced a 'Report Junk' feature that addresses the spam issue users have encountered in their iCloud calendars, according to 9to5Mac.

Over the past few weeks, Apple users have reported that invites to spam events were randomly appearing on their iCloud calendars.

These spam invites, usually sent from email addresses with Chinese names, were advertising deals on products such as Ray-Ban sunglasses or Ugg boots.

This issue originated from spam emails, as Apple's devices automatically scanned users' inboxes and notified them of calendar invitations present inside.

Users were therefore notified of these invites promoting sales, present within spam emails that had made their way into their inbox.

The new 'Report Junk' option can currently only be accessed through the iCloud calendar web app, but according to 9to5Mac, Apple might extend this feature to both iOS and Mac-based Calendar apps in upcoming updates.

Users who wish to delete and report a spam invite can go to iCloud.com, log in using their Apple ID, click on the invite in question and flag it by clicking Report Junk.

The option is only available for calendar invites from senders who are not within a user's contact list.

01/12/2016: Apple apologises for calendar spam

Apple has apologised for an issue with its Calendar app that led to iCloud users being spammed with events related to supposed Black Friday deals on products such as Ray-Ban glasses, Uggs Boots or Pandora bracelets.

The issue originated from spam emails, as Apple's iOS and MacOS operating systems scan users' inboxes and notify them of any calendar invitations.

The idea behind the feature is that users will automatically have events mentioned in emails noted down on their calendar, but in this case spam messages advertising sales of counterfeit consumer products have also been automatically generating invitations.

Some users also received spam invitations to edit reminders or view photo groups.

In a statement sent to Rene Ritchie, editorial director of the news blog iMore, Apple wrote: "We are sorry that some of our users are receiving spam calendar invitations. We are actively working to address this issue by identifying and blocking suspicious senders and spam in the invites being sent."

There is currently no way of only blocking these specific messages on iOS and MacOS, but users can get rid of them by blocking automatic in-app Calendar notifications.

How to get rid of spam calendar events notifications 1. Go to iCloud.com and login to your account2. Go to the calendar section3. Click on the cog button on the bottom left corner and then on Advanced4. Change Invitations from 'In-app notifications' to 'Email to..'

This will ensure you receive calendar invites as emails other than notifications within the Calendar app.