The FCC’s recent decision created an urgent need for businesses to protect and claim their phone numbers… before someone else does.
This past December, the FCC came out with a momentous decision that rocked the messaging industry by declaring that they consider wireless text messaging (SMS and MMS) an ‘information service’ and not a telecom service.
Inadvertently, the FCC created an even more urgent reason why businesses need to claim and protect their phone numbers.
The FCC’s decision that text messages don’t fall under their jurisdiction means that businesses can’t ask for their help if and when they become victims of fraudulent activity such as phone slamming or unauthorized text enablement.
What If… and What’s Next?
So what if your business is the victim of slamming? Without protection and possible prosecution against bad actors by the FCC, your only recourse is private litigation, which can be very expensive and time-consuming.
Meanwhile, your business may be crippled and your brand compromised by what’s becoming an all-too-easy form of phone fraud: text-enabling phone numbers without your knowledge. Just read this Somos study to find out how easy it is for bad actors to engage in this type of fraud.
So what’s next?
Most of us take precautions, believing that an ounce of protection is worth a pound of cure. We carry insurance to protect against mishap and mayhem to our cars, our homes and our lives.
So why not carry a type of insurance on your phone numbers? One of our customers called our proprietary service Text Protect™ to be a ‘no-brainer.’ It’s a super simple (and free) ounce of protection – whether or not you’ve already text-enabled your numbers. And it can be added to any Toll Free, local landline or VoIP-enabled number in the North American Dialing Plan.
With Text Protect, the rightful owner stakes claim to their phone number(s) by creating an eight-digit alphanumeric PIN that ensures your approval for any changes or services such as text enablement. The PIN can be generated and used by a single person or department and can be self-managed. A business-class version is also available, where Midori Interactive will manage the PINs for a small set-up charge and we monitor activity on your number(s) for a nominal monthly fee.
Plus, by creating the first and only electronic Digital Letter of Authorization (DLOA), Text Protect saves a significant amount of time and money in the porting process. It reduces what is currently an inefficient, labor and time-intensive process down to a matter of minutes while eliminating excuses, delays and possible rejection by the losing carrier.
As This Megatrend Continues…
This year promises to bring many exciting advances in number ownership, text enablement, portability, customer service and security management. We are at the very forefront of these advances and have made it our mission to offer customers the advice and tools they need to succeed in 2019.
Please visit the Text Protect page and our Newsroom for some exciting announcements we will be making shortly.
And we look forward to starting a conversation about how we can help you claim ownership of your phone numbers – before someone else does.
Learn more about Text Protect, email us: sales@midori.ai , or call or text us: 346-223-9287.