The National Telecommunications Commission (NTC) has ordered mobile phone manufacturers, distributors and dealers to educate mobile phone users on the various features that can protect them from text scams and spams.
In a memorandum order signed by NTC Commissioner Gamaliel Cordoba on September 14, the agency directed representatives of mobile phone manufacturers, distributors and dealers to provide instructions to their mobile phone users on how to block texts from numbers not in their contact list and how to create a spam folder in their inbox.
These directions shall be disseminated through the manufacturers’ websites and social media accounts.
The NTC also directed manufacturers and distributors to put up posters in their physical stores to educate mobile phone buyers on how to use, enable or activate the text blocking, spam folder and other similar features in their phones.
Each new mobile phone package should have a leaflet containing instructions on how to activate the text blocking feature, the NTC said.
“The measures shall be implemented within 15 days from the issuance of this memorandum order and thereafter shall form part of the mandatory requirements for type approval/acceptance and related permits for customers premises equipment, particularly mobile phone products filed before the commission,” the NTC order read.
This forms part of the government’s initiative to address the proliferation of the new variant of spam text messages that include the name of the recipient.
On September 12, the NTC also issued an order directing Dito Telecommunity Corp., Globe Telecom Inc. and PLDT Inc. unit Smart Communications Inc. to deactivate clickable person-to-person URLs in text messages.
The telcos were also asked to submit a written report of compliance to the Office of the Commissioner on or before September 16.
