The UK’s multi-million pound mobile marketing industry is being “seriously damaged” by government regulators failing to take action for tackling SMS spam, the Direct Marketing Association’s (DMA) chief of operations, Mike Lordan has claimed.
Commenting on the findings of the DMA’s survey into consumer experience of SMS spam, Lordan says: “The results of our survey show that the public don’t know who to turn to when they want to complain about receiving SMS spam. This is hardly surprising given the fact that regulators have yet to determine which of them is or should be responsible for taking action against mobile spam.
“This is obviously causing great frustration for those mobile phone owners who are being plagued by spam, and it’s also causing serious damage to the legitimate mobile marketing industry. If spam is allowed to continue unchecked, then consumers will naturally become hostile to all mobile marketing messages.
“It’s vital that the regulators now take action. We, the DMA, have already offered our expertise to work out a solution to the problem and help the regulatory bodies to step up and take the initiative.”
Findings of the survey of 1,200 UK adults, conducted by the DMA and Toluna QuickSurveys, highlight that 43 per cent of UK mobile phone owners have received one or more SMS spam messages regarding accident claims, debt management or the mis-selling of personal protection insurance.
Confusion reigns, though, as to who to turn to when they want to make a complaint: 17 per cent said they would complain to their network provider, 20 per cent to Ofcom, 9 per cent to the Office of Fair Trading, 4 per cent to the Ministry of Justice, 3 per cent to the Information Commissioner’s Office, and a massive 46 per cent say they have no idea who they would complain to.
Recently, the DMA hosted a roundtable discussion with representatives from Ofcom, the Ministry of Justice, the Information Commissioner’s Office, and the Office of Fair Trading, to address the issue of identifying who is or should be responsible for clamping down on SMS spam. All agreed on the need for clarification for consumers. The group will be convening again next month to discuss the next steps.
Survey findings:
When asked if they have ever received unsolicited spam SMS regarding accident claims, debt management or mis-selling of personal protection insurance:
- 43 per cent of people reported having received at least one such spam SMS.
- 30 per cent said they have received at least one spam SMS in the past month
- 8 per cent have received at least one in the past six months
- 4 per cent have in the past year
- 2 per cent have in the past two years
- 42 per cent have never received SMS spam
- 16 per cent said they have never received SMS spam, but a close family member or friend has
Of the 43 per cent of adults who have received spam texts:
- 15 per cent have received one message
- 22 per cent have received two messages
- 15 per cent per cent have received three messages
- 47 per cent have received four or more messages
For those 43 per cent who have received SMS spam:
- 28 per cent ignored it
- 54 per cent deleted it
- 3 per cent responded to make a claim
- 9 per cent responded by texting STOP
- 6 per cent made a complaint
For those who 43 per cent who have received SMS spam:
- 15 per cent thought that the spam SMS could cause harm to their phone from a virus
- 31 per cent thought they could incur a premium charge to their phone bill for replying to it
- 10 per cent thought they could incur an premium charge to their phone bill for receiving it
- 40 per cent thought there was no cost to receiving it
When asked who they would complain to if they received a message in the future and wanted to make a complaint:
- 17 per cent said their mobile network provider
- 20 per cent said Ofcom
- 9 per cent said the Office of Fair Trading
- 3 per cent said the Information Commissioner’s Office
- 4 per cent said the Ministry of Justice
- 46 per cent said they would have no idea who to complain to
