iOS lockdown mode blocking contacts

Questions
1

I had lockdown mode enabled on my iphone in the early days of ios18. The limitations it implements were fine except for one day when i got a random notification saying “Lockdown mode blocked xxxx from contacting you.” This is a contact i had been messaging recently and I have no idea why it would be blocking them.

Blocking messages without me having any control was too much so I disabled lockdown mode at the time with the intention of investigating later.

Fast forward and I’m now on ios26 and want to revisit this. I’ve done some searching and was only able to find this article, which basically comes down to - nobody knows what it means; ignore it - Apple’s Lockdown Mode is good for security — but its notifications are baffling | TechCrunch

Has anyone else encountered these notifications with lockdown mode enabled and have any further information?

2

My interpretation of that notification is that someone changed their contact photo (which Lockdown mode blocks).

3

does it block you from receving messages from them?

4

I cannot make calls unless 2g/3g is turned on in 26. Can you?

5

Not text messages but the FaceTime restrictions are something to keep in mind in general.