Yesterday, the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) released a notice of proposed rulemaking (NPRM) the relates to a potential plan to extend STIR/SHAKEN call authentication protocols to text messages. As explained in the accompanying press release, the NPRM “proposes requiring mobile wireless providers to block texts, at the network level, that purport to be from invalid, unallocated, or unused numbers, and numbers on a Do-Not-Originate (DNO) list.” The FCC also seeks input on other text-message-blocking initiatives.

As with any NPRM, it remains to be seen what proposed rules will ultimately be adopted and if public input changes the final regulations in any notable way. But, considering the general strategies the FCC has been taking toward callers, it seems likely that some sort of text-blocking or labeling regulations will be implemented. This further underlines the ongoing threats to call deliverability that marketers face.

To read the NPRM and the FCC’s press release, click here.