AUSTIN (KXAN) — With the Nov. 5 election a little more than a month away, chances are your phone has received a few political texts, asking you to donate or to vote. Turns out, there are some strict rules groups must follow to text you, but there are also some loopholes.
“If you’re on Facebook or any of the social media that stuff gets sold,” one man said. “I’m sure they’re buying those lists.”
As the election cycle gets ready to hit overdrive, campaigns are trying to reach you any way they can.
“Text messages are a really inexpensive way to reach a lot of voters quickly,” Republican strategist Mark Graul said.
Robotexts are becoming increasingly more popular as a way to get you to react. There’s just one problem: they seem to be never-ending.
“Political-based advertising, in that sort of manner, does not fall within the Do Not Call registry,” said Brian Jack, chief information security officer for cybersecurity company Know Be 4.
The Federal Communications Commission, or FCC, has an entire section of its website dedicated to political advertising — whether by text message or phone call. While robotexts must follow the same rules as robocalls, a major exception is if a message is manually sent.
According to the FCC, political text messages sent to a mobile phone using an autodialer require the called party’s prior express consent. Messages sent manually can be sent without prior consent.
“The best thing you can do is to reply ‘STOP,’ and it will at least prevent that number from messaging you again,” Jack suggested.
The FCC adds you can also report the sender by forwarding the texts to 7726 (or “SPAM”).
Scammers are also paying attention this time of year. They know you might not be and will try to send you links via text to get you to click.
“Anything can be a scam,” Jack said. “It’s just trying to influence you, or get you to do something you wouldn’t normally do.”
No matter which side of the aisle you might be on, most agree the messages can be a lot.
“It’s a form of social engineering. It’s just not often the most deceptive or nefarious one out there,” Jack added.
A problem that will likely only get worse before it gets better.
The FCC has more suggestions on how to opt-out of messages, or even report ones you think might be scams.
It suggests you do one of the following:
- File a complaint online at https://consumercomplaints.fcc.gov
- By phone: 1-888-CALL-FCC (1-888-225-5322); TTY: 1-888-TELL-FCC (1-888-835-5322); ASL: 1-844-432-2275
- By mail (please include your name, address, contact information and as much detail about your complaint as possible):
Federal Communications Commission
Consumer and Governmental Affairs Bureau
45 L Street NE
Washington, DC 20554