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Australian SMS
SPAM compliance
A simple guide
Written by Brad Down
© 2009 Known Pty Ltd

THE EASY WAY TO SEND SMS

What is SMS?
SMS IS THE MOST PERSONAL AND IMMEDIATE COMMUNICATION
METHOD AVAILABLE. THIS MEANS SPAM COMPLIANCE IS OF THE
UTMOST IMPORTANCE.

95% of text messages are opened within 4 mins compared to 48hrs for email.
SMS messages are capped at 160 characters in length although in many countries multiple
messages can be combined into one with a process called concatenation.

SMS can be used to deliver text, but also links to the mobile web which can enable video,
images and applications.
With the forethought, planning and best practices in mind, your organisation can benefit hugely

with this channel.

If strict guidelines are not followed you can have extremely negative impact on your brand.

If strict rules and

guidelines are not
followed you can have
extremely negative
impact on your brand.

support@burstsms.com www.burstsms.com +612 6100 4453

What is the Spam Act 2003?
THE ACMA (AUSTRALIAN COMMUNICATIONS AND MEDIA
AUTHORITY) PASSED THE SPAM ACT TO CRACKDOWN ON
UNSOLICITED ELECTRONIC MARKETING AND SPAM

Many businesses will be aware of the SPAM ACT 2003 in regard to email but the law applies
to all electronic messages including SMS in exactly the same way.

The
 consequences and fines that have been issued by the ACMA during Federal Court
proceedings are significant. They have broad powers.

SPAM is generally associated with sending thousands of messages however under the SPAM
act just one message sent without consent can be considered SPAM.

The
 SPAM ACT 2003 covers email, SMS, MMS and instant messaging, phone calls and
facsimile are exempt.

Many businesses are

not aware that the
SPAM ACT applies to
SMS as well as Email

For more information visit the acma website at www.acma.gov.au

support@burstsms.com www.burstsms.com +612 6100 4453

What are the compliance rules?
THERE ARE THREE PRIMARY RULES THAT EVERY COMMERCIAL
SMS MESSAGE MUST ADHERE TO IN ORDER TO NOT BE SPAM.

CONSENT - You must have consent to send a commercial message, there are many ways to
gain consent. Please see page X for consent guidelines.

SENDER IDENTIFICATION - You must identify yourself when sending the message, either in
a recognisable CallerID or within the message itself. Please see page x for sender
identification guidelines.

FUNCTIONAL UNSUBSCRIBE FACILITY - You must provide a conspicuous and functional

unsubscribe method that is active for at least 30 days.

There are three main

rules that must be
adhered to when
sending commercial SMS

support@burstsms.com www.burstsms.com +612 6100 4453

How do I get consent?
THE IDEA BEHIND CONSENT IS THAT THE RECIPIENT SHOULD
WANT TO RECEIVE YOUR MESSAGE AND FIND IT USEFUL WHEN
THEY DO. SMS IS ESPECIALLY PERSONAL, NOBODY WANTS
MESSAGES THAT ARE IRRELEVANT. THERE ARE TWO TYPES.

EXPRESS
 CONSENT

- Filling in a form,
- ticking a box on a website
- over the phone
- face-to-face
- swapping business cards

The recipient must be clearly aware that he or she may receive commercial messages in the future.
You cannot send an electronic message to seek consent: this is in itself a commercial message,
because it seeks to establish a business relationship. Keep a record of consent, you may need to
prove it later.

INFERRED CONSENT

- Through an existing business relationship

- Through conspicuous publication of a work-related number

If an organisation has a strong relationship with the owner of the number such as a club member
or service subscriber receiving messages may be implied.

Consent may also be implied by the publishing of numbers on websites, in magazines or other
publications. The recipient must be identified as relevant to your message. eg if you want to send
information about a technology product the recipient must be identified as the IT manager. If there is
a statement that unsolicited commercial messages are not wanted you cannot infer consent.

support@burstsms.com www.burstsms.com +612 6100 4453

How do I identify myself?
YOU MUST IDENTIFY YOURSELF WHEN SENDING COMMERCIAL
MESSAGES. GENERALLY PEOPLE WILL NOT RECOGNISE YOUR
NUMBER SO YOU MUST IDENTIFY YOURSELF IN THE MESSAGE.

CALLER ID
Some systems like BurstSMS allow you to edit the CallerID so that when a recipient receives the
message a name appears instead of an unknown number. You can use this to identify yourself
however be aware that you cannot receive replies using this method so you will need to provide
some other type of opt-out method.

IDENTIFY
 YOURSELF IN THE MESSAGE
The best way to identify yourself is within the message, this way you can use a special number to
receive replies and process opt-out’s. It is also a good idea to qualify the recipient as to why they are
receiving the message. eg. Beauty Spa Members. This weeks specials are...
By identifying yourself you will lessen the risk of damaging your brand by annoying people. They will
not always remember when or how they cam to subscribe to your service.

Indentifying yourself
and noting why the person is
receiving the message will
generate the best experience.

support@burstsms.com www.burstsms.com +612 6100 4453

How do I allow users to opt-out?
AS PART OF YOUR RESPONSIBILITIES YOU MUST PROVIDE AN
OPT-OUT METHOD THAT IS PART OF YOUR MESSAGE.

OPT-OUT LONG CODE

The best way to manage opt-outs is to allow a recipient to reply to the message. This is usually with
the word STOP. The BurstSMS system provides free use of an opt-out long code. The recipient can
simply reply STOP along with a 4 digit list ID to automatically remove themselves from lists. They
can also just reply STOP but this will only work until you send your next message. As you must
provide a functional opt-out for 30 days we recommend the STOP list ID approach.

REPLY
 STOP TO YOUR NUMBER
If you send small campaigns you can also just instruct people to opt-out directly to your phone. If you
do this by law you must remove the recipient from your list within 5 days.

OTHER INSTRUCTION
You can also instruct people to email you or call you to opt-out, as long as the instruction is
contained within your message and you action it within 5 days.

By law you must provide

a functional opt-out
method for 30 days.

support@burstsms.com www.burstsms.com +612 6100 4453

What is BurstSMS.com?
BURST SMS IS PREMIUM WEB BASED PRODUCT GIVING
THE REAL WEB 2.0 EXPERIENCE TO YOUR CLIENTS.

Superior user experience and simplicity.

Automated bounce handling and database cleaning.
Intuitive list uploading and management.
Anti-SPAM compliant opt-out code and opt-in web forms free!

Easy to read delivery reports, easily search for individual deliveries.

Simple but advanced API to integrate into applications.
Personalise messages with customisable message variables.
Quicksend feature to send messages directly from your browser at any time.
Built in response campaigns. ie SMS your name to
+614000000 to enter competition (Contact Us)
Send images and video via SMS (Contact Us)

BurstSMS is the easiest

to use web based
application to send SMS

support@burstsms.com www.burstsms.com +612 6100 4453

Contact Us
FOR A FREE TRIAL PLEASE CONTACT US

support@burstsms.com


+612 6100 4453

SMS: +61 439 410 654

Skype: GetKnown

PUBLISHED BY

Known Pty Ltd

10 Hart Street, Surry Hills NSW 2010
Telephone: +612 6100 4453
Copyright ©2009
No part of the contents of this publication may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any
means without the written permission of Known Pty Ltd.
www.known.com.au

support@burstsms.com www.burstsms.com +612 6100 4453