What Are the TCPA, CAN-SPAM, and CTIA Guidelines for SMS Compliance?
Understand TCPA, CAN-SPAM, and CTIA rules before launching SMS campaigns.
SMS marketing in the US is governed by several regulations and industry guidelines. Understanding them reduces your risk of fines, carrier blocks, and lost deliverability.
TCPA (Telephone Consumer Protection Act)
Requires express written consent before sending marketing texts. Violations carry significant per-message fines. Always obtain and document opt-in consent before messaging contacts.
CAN-SPAM
Primarily governs commercial email, but its principles, including clear sender identification and a working opt-out mechanism, are applicable to commercial messaging broadly.
CTIA Messaging Principles
Industry guidelines from the Cellular Telecommunications and Internet Association. Carriers use CTIA principles when evaluating whether to approve and deliver campaigns. Key requirements include clear consent, easy opt-outs, honest sender identification, and appropriate message frequency.
Best practices:
- Get express consent and document it, including timestamp and IP address where possible
- Include clear opt-out instructions in your first message to a contact
- Keep message frequency consistent with what you communicated at opt-in
- Reconfirm consent if you have not messaged a contact in approximately 18 months
See our TCPA and CAN-SPAM guide and CTIA overview on the blog.