Toll-free SMS Verification

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One of the advantages of NumberGarage is the ability to send and receive text messages on your toll-free number. Before you can activate text messaging for your number, you will be required to complete a verification process.

To activate your text messaging and begin the verification process, check out the following article:

Activating and deactivating text messaging

Here's more information about the verification process.

What is toll-free verification? 

The toll-free verification process qualifies your messaging traffic to be tagged as verified with our downstream carriers (not directly with mobile operators). The approved tag reduces the number of false-positive blocks when you send messages and helps increase the message deliverability on a single toll-free number. 

Verification is not whitelisting, so approval doesn’t guarantee that you won’t experience any blocking when sending messages. However, as long as the sent traffic aligns with the verification application you've completed, we can work with our carrier more swiftly to share the campaign details with the mobile operator and ask for the block to be removed.

Here's the required information for SMS Verification:

• Company Name - Your company name that the messages are being sent from
• Website - Link to your website. Please note your website must be active. The only exception is if you complete a paper form to opt in
• Outbound Volume - Please estimate the volume of outbound SMS you plan to send from your toll-free number
• Example Message - You must include 1-3 variations of messages you plan to send from your toll-free number.
• In case of Canadian Traffic - Will Canadian phone numbers receive most of the messages you plan to send from your toll-free number?
• Use Case- Use the drop-down menu to select a category that resembles your use case.

Opt-in

• Consumer consent should be collected by the direct (first) party sending the messages.

  • If website opt-in: We may follow up by requesting screenshots of the web form where the client adds a number and agrees to receive messaging.

  • If a keyword or QR Code Opt-in: Where does the customer find the keyword to opt-in to these messages? We will follow up to get this information from you.

  • If Voice/IVR opt-in: Please provide a screenshot of opt-in via voice in the client's database/ CRM. (IE, a check box on their CRM saying that the customer opted in and the date). Once you've submitted the form, please submit this to support@numbergarage.com

  • If 2FA/OTP: Please provide a screenshot process to receive the initial text. Once you've submitted the online form, please submit the screenshot to support@numbergarage.com

  • If Paper form (Customer/ Employee): Once you've submitted the online form, please submit a copy of the paper form to support@numbergarage.com

Ineligible Use Cases

There are a series of use cases that are ineligible for toll-free SMS. If your industry and use case fits any of these, you will be unable to use this service:

High-Risk Financial Services

• Payday loans; short-term, high-interest loans; auto, mortgage, and student loans

• Gambling; sweepstakes

• Stock alerts; cryptocurrency

Get Rich Quick Schemes

• Debt consolidation and reduction

• Credit repair programs

• Deceptive work-from-home programs

• Multi-level marketing

Debt Forgiveness

• Work-from-home programs

• Risk investment opportunities

• Debt collection or consolidation

Illegal Substances / Activities

• Cannabis

• Alcohol

• Tobacco or vape

General

• Phishing, fraud, or scams

• Deceptive marketing

• Pornography, profanity, or hate speech

• Firearms

How long does toll-free SMS verification take to complete?

Currently, the verification process takes 4-5 weeks to complete. You can receive inbound SMS on your toll-free number during this time, but outbound SMS may be limited.

Due to an industry-wide standard, unverified toll-free numbers will be unable to send outbound SMS starting on November 8, 2023. Toll-free numbers that are pending verification will no longer be able to send outbound SMS starting on January 31, 2024.

*Please note SMS sent from your toll-free number to a Canadian local number will also not work until the SMS verification is complete.  Your account will show the message has been sent, but the inbound carrier will not allow inbound SMS from unverified toll-free numbers.