Prohibited message content for SMS and MMS – SendHub

The following use cases are not allowed on SMS or MMS in the United States or Canada. This information applies to long code messaging with A2P 10DLC (10 Digit Long Code) and toll-free messaging.

Some cases that are not forbidden but can still lead to your message being filtered by a carrier (AT&T, T-Mobile, Verizon, etc.) For more information, check out SendHub's article on what to do when your number is being spam filtered by the receiving carriers.

Category	Examples	Notes
High-risk financial services	Payday loans Short term high-interest loans Third-party auto loans Third-party mortgage loans Student loans Cryptocurrency	“Third-party” means originating from any party other than the one which will service the loan.
Third-party lead generation services	Companies that buy, sell, or share consumer information.
Debt collection or forgiveness	Third-party debt collection Debt consolidation Debt reduction Credit repair programs	“Third-party” means originating from any party other than the one who is owed the debt. For example, a hospital could send messages regarding bills for its own patients, assuming they provided opt-in to receive that messaging.
“Get rich quick” schemes	Work-from-home programs Risk investment opportunities Pyramid schemes	This is different from outreach about employment as a result of compliant opt-in practices, messages from brokerages to their members, investment news alerts, or other investment-related messages.
Illegal substances	Cannabis (United States) CBD (United States) Prescription drugs	Cannabis is federally illegal in the United States. Cannabis businesses will not be permitted to use SMS/MMS messaging in the US, regardless of message content. CBD is federally legal, but is not legal in some US states, so US carriers do not permit messaging related to CBD. Offers for drugs that cannot be sold over-the-counter in the US/Canada are forbidden.
Gambling	Casino apps Gambling websites	Gambling traffic is prohibited in the US and Canada on all number types (Toll Free, Short Code, Long Code).
"S.H.A.F.T." use cases	Sex Hate Alcohol Firearms Tobacco	While Tobacco traffic is prohibited on Toll Free, it is allowed on Short Code, or Long Code, as long as proper age gating procedures are in place. Firearms and Alcohol traffic is allowed on Toll Free, Short Code, and Long Code, as long as proper age gating procedures are in place. Vaping-related traffic is prohibited.

Please read our cannabis account policy for more information.

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