Carrier Filtering - SMS Best Practise

Overview

Wireless carriers nationally and internationally are increasingly applying SMS message filtering to protect mobile subscribers from spam/scams and other forms of unwanted messaging. The carriers use machine learning software to filter text messages which appear to contain suspicious content, causing these messages to be blocked and not delivered to the intended recipient. Other factors can also influence the filtering process, for example if sending your messages causes high opt-out rates or end-user complaints.

SMS Best Practise

In order to reduce the risk of your messages being filtered by carriers, we recommend that you review your SMS messaging process and message content to ensure you are following these best practise guidelines.

Any banned words will be removed from messages being sent from our system.

First there are some things that you should always do:

• Always get agreed opt-in from clients before sending them any SMS messages to comply with telecom regulations and to help prevent your clients from opting out of receiving your messages in future
• Always identify yourself as the sender of the message so the recipient knows it's from you and why they are receiving it. We recommend including the [ORGANIZATION] command in all your SMS templates so the system automatically includes your account name in every message
• Always include opt-out wording in every message to comply with telecom regulations and ensure the recipient can easily revoke consent to receive SMS messages if they no longer require them. We recommend using the SMS template option marked "Allow client to opt-out of reminders" and set this to Yes, so the system automatically includes opt-out wording in every message

• Do not use website links in your messages that have been shortened using shared public URL shorteners such as Tiny.Url or Bit.ly, as these are often used to disguise illicit/unwanted sites. Only include URL's that are proprietary and branded e.g your own website URL or a recognised brand URL
• Do not include emojis, unnecessary special characters or excessive capital letters in messages as these are known to cause carrier filtering
• Do not send any content that is illegal, harmful, unwanted, inappropriate, objectionable, confirmed to be criminal misinformation, or otherwise poses a threat to the public, even if the content is permissible by law in your state/country as this may still be in breach of other national/international carrier regulations. Examples include but are not limited to the following, if in any doubt you should check the wireless carrier regulations applicable to the message sending location, route and destination:
  • Narcotic drugs and illegal substances*
  • Prescription medication
  • Hate speech, harassment, exploitative, abusive, or any communications that originate from a hate group
  • Fraudulent messages, spam or scam
  • Malicious content, such as malware or viruses
  • High-risk financial services
  • Third-party lead generation services
  • Debt collection or forgiveness
  • "Get rich quick" schemes
  • Gambling
  • Weapons and firearms
  • Alcohol, tobacco and vaping

Messages related to cannabis are not allowed in the United States as federal laws prohibit its sale, even though some states have legalized it. Similarly, messages related to CBD are not permissible in the United States, as certain states prohibit its sale. Therefore we don't allow messages related to either.