Domino’s Pizza has become one of the first high-profile businesses in Ireland to have its marketing text messages labelled as likely spam following an overhaul of how such communications are managed.
On Thursday the communications watchdog ComReg launched a new system aimed at protecting consumers from criminals misrepresenting themselves as legitimate businesses.
Companies are now required to register details of their SMS messaging on a database or risk having their communications initially flagged as suspect and ultimately blocked.
Irish people and businesses lose about €110 million annually to scammers sending bogus text messages. The scale of the fraud prompted ComReg to introduce new measures.
READ MORE
The SMS sender ID registry has been designed to protect consumers, services and brands by helping mobile service providers to identify and block fake SMS messages at source.
SMS providers will be required to check text messages from SMS sender IDs against the registered SMS sender IDs in the registry.
[ Over 8,000 business register with ComReg ahead of anti-scam system roll-outOpens in new window ]
More than 8,000 businesses registered on ComReg’s register before the deadline on Thursday, with businesses who failed to do so running the risk of having their text messages to customers and potential customers labelled as “likely scam” after the deadline passed.
Earlier this week ComReg urged organisations that had not yet registered their SMS Sender IDs to do so without delay and said registration was “straightforward and free”.
How the wealthy are buying up land to avoid inheritance tax
However, the pizza giant, which employs about 3,000 people operating out of stores all over the State, appears to have missed the ComReg warning as messages sent to customers promoting a summer meal deal on Thursday carried the spam warning.
The “likely spam” label attached to the marketing messages would be considered unexpected given the size of the Dominos operation in Ireland and the potential such a label has to harm its reputation and lead to a loss of business.
Dominos did not respond to queries from The Irish Times asking whether it had registered its sender IDs with ComReg and if not, why not?
It is not the only business to have found its messages being labelled as likely spam, with reports of legitimate sources such as GP practices also falling foul of the new system in is first phase.
From October 3rd, SMS messages from unregistered SMS Sender IDs will be blocked.
