How to Stop Spam and Other Unwanted Text Messages
by Jodi Ochstein, Village Volunteer
Avoid unwanted texts by using these tips:
Do not respond to unwanted texts from questionable sources. Your phone should have a way to mark a text or call as “SPAM”. Several mobile service providers allow you to block the sender by forwarding unwanted texts to 7726 (or "SPAM"). Check with your provider about options.
Do not click on any links - even if the source claims to be your bank, USPS, CVS, Amazon, etc. There has been an uptick in illegal texts with links that can lead you to fake sites. If you see a text like that, make sure it is coming from a reliable source. Check the company website and your email for communications from the company.
Be careful about giving out your mobile phone number or any other personal information.
Read through commercial web forms and check for a privacy policy when submitting your mobile phone number to any customer website. You should be able to opt out of receiving texts – but you may have to check or uncheck a preselected box to do so.
About those political campaign calls and texts...
Political campaign-related autodialed or prerecorded voice calls, including autodialed live calls, autodialed texts, and prerecorded voice messages, are prohibited to cell phones, pagers, or other mobile devices without the called party's prior express consent. The same restrictions apply to protected phone lines such as emergency or toll-free lines, or lines serving hospitals or similar facilities.
Political campaign-related autodialed or pre-recorded voice calls are permitted when made to landline telephones, even without prior express consent.
According to the FCC, all prerecorded voice message calls, campaign-related and otherwise, must include certain identification information:
The identity of the business, individual, or other entity initiating the call must be clearly stated at the beginning of the prerecorded message.
If the calling party is a business or corporate entity, the entity's official business name must be stated clearly at the beginning of the message.
The telephone number of the calling party must be provided, either during or after the message.
Text Messages:
Robotexts – text messages generated through autodialing – are also considered a type of call and fall under all robocall rules.
As text messages generally go to mobile phones, robotexts require the called party's prior express consent.
Political text messages can be sent without the intended recipient’s prior consent if the message’s sender does not use autodialing technology to send such texts and instead manually dials them.
Additional Info:
Resources for iPhone users
Resources for Android users