1. Introduction

This SMS & Messaging Policy ("Policy") governs the use of SMS, MMS, and any other messaging features provided through the Line platform (the "Service"). This Policy forms part of our Terms of Service and should be read alongside our Acceptable Use Policy and Privacy Policy.

All messaging sent through Line is classified as Application-to-Person (A2P) messaging, regardless of the phone number type used (long code, short code, or toll-free). You are responsible for ensuring that all messaging activity conducted through your account complies with this Policy, all applicable laws and regulations, and the messaging policies of our underlying telecommunications providers (including Twilio).

2. Consent Requirements

2.1 Prior Consent

You must obtain clear, affirmative consent from each recipient before sending them any message through the Service. Consent must be:

• Explicit — the recipient must actively agree to receive messages from you (e.g. by ticking a checkbox, signing a form, or sending you a message first)
• Informed — the recipient must understand what types of messages they will receive, the approximate frequency, and who is sending them
• Specific — consent applies only to you and the specific purpose or campaign disclosed at the time of collection. Consent cannot be transferred to other brands, organisations, or campaigns
• Documented — you must retain proof of consent (e.g. signed forms, timestamped sign-up confirmations, web form submissions with IP addresses) for the duration of the messaging relationship and in accordance with applicable data retention requirements

Consent cannot be obtained by purchasing or renting phone number lists from third parties. You must not add recipients to messaging lists without their direct, verifiable consent.

2.2 Exceptions to Prior Consent

The following scenarios may not require separate prior consent, but you remain responsible for compliance with all applicable laws:

• Recipient-initiated contact. When an individual contacts you first (e.g. sends you a text message or calls your Line number), you may respond within the context of that specific conversation. This does not constitute blanket consent for future marketing or promotional messages.
• Transactional and service messages. You may send informational messages where a prior business relationship exists and the recipient: (a) provided their phone number to you; (b) took an action that triggered the communication (e.g. booking an appointment, placing an order, requesting a callback); and (c) has not opted out. Acceptable transactional messages include appointment reminders, booking confirmations, delivery updates, one-time passwords, receipts, and service alerts. Marketing, promotional, or advocacy content is not permitted under this exception.

2.3 Consent Expiry and Reconfirmation

If you do not send a message to a recipient within a reasonable period after obtaining consent (generally within 90 days), you must reconfirm consent before messaging them. For ongoing messaging campaigns, you should periodically reconfirm consent in accordance with applicable regulations and best practices.

3. Sender Identification

Every message you send through the Service must clearly identify your organisation as the sender, except in follow-up messages within an ongoing conversation where your identity is already established. Your first message to any recipient must include your business name or a clear identifier so the recipient knows who is contacting them.

4. Opt-Out and STOP Handling

4.1 Opt-Out Instructions

Your first message to any recipient must include clear opt-out instructions. We recommend using the standard language:

"Reply STOP to unsubscribe"

The following standard opt-out keywords are recognised and automatically processed by our telecommunications infrastructure:

• STOP
• STOPALL
• UNSUBSCRIBE
• CANCEL
• END
• QUIT
• REVOKE
• OPTOUT

4.2 Processing Opt-Outs

When a recipient replies with any of the opt-out keywords above, our system will automatically:

1. Send a single confirmation message acknowledging the opt-out (e.g. "You have been unsubscribed and will no longer receive messages from us. Reply START to re-subscribe.")
2. Add the recipient to a suppression list (Do Not Message list)
3. Block all further outbound messages to that recipient from your account

You must not send any additional messages after the confirmation message. Attempting to circumvent opt-out requests — including by messaging opted-out recipients from different phone numbers — is a serious violation of this Policy and may result in immediate account termination.

4.3 Re-Subscription

A recipient who has opted out may re-subscribe by sending a START, YES, or UNSTOP keyword to your Line number. You must not re-add opted-out recipients to your messaging lists manually or through any other means without receiving a new, verifiable opt-in directly from the recipient.

4.4 HELP Keyword

When a recipient replies with HELP, you should respond with a message that includes: your organisation name, a brief description of the messaging programme, contact information (phone number, email, or website), and instructions on how to opt out.

5. Message Content Restrictions

5.1 Prohibited Content

The following content is strictly prohibited in all messages sent through the Service, regardless of recipient consent:

• Illegal content — any content that violates the laws of the recipient's jurisdiction, the United Kingdom, or any other applicable jurisdiction
• Spam and unsolicited messages — bulk unsolicited messages, messages sent without proper consent, or messages that violate the UK Privacy and Electronic Communications Regulations (PECR) or other anti-spam legislation
• Fraud and deception — phishing, smishing, social engineering, impersonation, or any messages designed to deceive recipients or obtain personal or financial information through dishonest means
• Hate speech and harassment — threatening, abusive, harassing, defamatory, discriminatory, or hateful content, including content from or promoting hate groups
• Malicious content — messages containing malware, viruses, or links to malicious websites
• Cannabis and controlled substances — marketing or sale of cannabis products (note: CBD-related content is permissible in the UK, subject to applicable advertising regulations)
• Prescription medications — offers for prescription drugs not available over the counter
• High-risk financial services — payday loans, short-term high-interest loans, "get rich quick" schemes, pyramid schemes, multi-level marketing, and deceptive financial promotions
• Third-party lead generation — messages sent on behalf of undisclosed third parties or using consent obtained for a different sender
• Debt collection — third-party debt collection or credit repair messaging

5.2 Restricted Content (Age and Geographic Gating Required)

The following content categories require age verification and compliance with applicable jurisdiction-specific laws before sending. You must be able to demonstrate that appropriate gating measures are in place:

• Alcohol
• Tobacco and vaping products
• Firearms and weapons
• Gambling and betting
• Adult and sexual content

If you send messages relating to any of the above categories, you must: (a) verify that all recipients meet the minimum legal age requirements in their jurisdiction; (b) comply with all applicable advertising and communications regulations; and (c) be prepared to provide proof of your compliance measures upon request.

5.3 Message Formatting

Standard SMS messages are limited to 160 characters per segment (GSM 3.38 encoding). Messages containing Unicode characters (including certain special characters and emojis) are limited to 70 characters per segment. Longer messages will be split into multiple segments, each billed separately. MMS messages sent to UK numbers may be converted to SMS with an embedded URL link.

6. Prohibited Messaging Practices

6.1 Snowshoeing

Spreading similar or identical messages across multiple phone numbers to evade spam detection or carrier filtering is strictly prohibited. This includes rotating between phone numbers to distribute message volume and avoid triggering rate limits or content filters.

6.2 Filter Evasion

You must not attempt to bypass carrier spam filters or content detection systems by:

• Intentionally misspelling words to avoid keyword detection
• Using non-standard opt-out phrases designed to evade compliance monitoring
• Embedding content in images or links to circumvent text-based filtering
• Using URL shorteners (e.g. bit.ly, tinyurl.com) to disguise link destinations — use branded or full-length URLs instead
• Any other technique designed to circumvent carrier or platform filtering mechanisms

6.3 Simulated Attacks

Using the Service to send simulated phishing messages, social engineering tests, or security awareness training messages is prohibited. Such messages resemble genuine threats and may trigger carrier filtering, account suspension, or enforcement action.

6.4 Misuse of Multiple Accounts

Creating multiple Line accounts to circumvent messaging limits, evade enforcement actions, or distribute messaging volume is prohibited and may result in the termination of all associated accounts.

7. UK-Specific Requirements

As Line provides UK phone numbers, the following UK-specific requirements apply to all messaging:

7.1 Regulatory Compliance

• UK GDPR and Data Protection Act 2018 — you must have a lawful basis for processing personal data (including phone numbers) and comply with all data subject rights
• Privacy and Electronic Communications Regulations (PECR) — marketing messages require prior opt-in consent; the "soft opt-in" exception applies only to existing customers who provided their details during a sale or negotiation, where the messages relate to similar products or services, and where the customer was given a clear opportunity to opt out
• Ofcom regulations — you must comply with all applicable Ofcom requirements for electronic communications
• ICO enforcement — the Information Commissioner's Office may impose fines of up to £500,000 for serious PECR breaches and up to £17.5 million (or 4% of global annual turnover) for UK GDPR breaches

7.2 Sender ID Restrictions

UK mobile network operators maintain a list of blocked alphanumeric sender IDs to prevent impersonation and fraud. Generic or security-related sender IDs (such as "Verify", "Security", "Bank", "OTP", "Delivery", "Alert", and many others) are blocked by UK carriers and will not be delivered. Use your registered business name as your sender ID to ensure delivery.

7.3 Telephone Preference Service (TPS)

You must not send unsolicited marketing messages to numbers registered on the Telephone Preference Service (TPS) or Corporate Telephone Preference Service (CTPS) unless the recipient has given specific, prior consent to receive messages from you.

7.4 Messaging Hours

We strongly recommend that you send marketing and promotional messages only during reasonable hours (between 8:00 AM and 9:00 PM in the recipient's local time zone). Transactional and service messages may be sent outside these hours where time-sensitive (e.g. appointment reminders, delivery updates).

8. International Messaging

If you send messages to recipients outside the United Kingdom, you are responsible for complying with the laws and regulations of the recipient's jurisdiction, including but not limited to:

• EU GDPR — for recipients in the European Economic Area
• TCPA and CTIA guidelines — for recipients in the United States
• CASL — for recipients in Canada
• Country-specific registration requirements, content restrictions, and sending rate limits

International messaging may incur additional charges and may be subject to additional carrier requirements, delivery restrictions, or regulatory obligations. We do not guarantee delivery of international messages to all destinations.

9. Monitoring and Enforcement

9.1 Monitoring

We monitor messaging patterns, volumes, and content for compliance and abuse prevention purposes. This monitoring is conducted in accordance with our Privacy Policy and may include automated systems that detect patterns indicative of spam, fraud, or policy violations. Our underlying telecommunications providers (including Twilio) also monitor message content in certain countries as described in their respective privacy policies.

9.2 Enforcement Actions

If we determine (in our sole discretion) that your messaging activity violates this Policy, applicable law, or the requirements of our telecommunications providers, we may take one or more of the following actions without prior notice:

• Issue a warning requiring corrective action
• Temporarily suspend your messaging capabilities while we investigate
• Permanently disable messaging on your account
• Terminate your Line account entirely
• Report your activity to relevant regulatory authorities or law enforcement
• Release phone numbers associated with your account

Where reasonably practicable and the violation is not severe, we will provide written notice and a reasonable opportunity to cure the violation before taking enforcement action. However, for serious violations (including fraud, phishing, hate speech, or illegal content), we may act immediately without prior notice.

9.3 Carrier Penalties

Mobile network operators and telecommunications providers may impose fines and penalties for non-compliant messaging. These penalties are passed through to you and may include:

• Content violation fines (up to £8,000 / $10,000 per violation for spam, phishing, or prohibited content)
• Programme evasion fines (up to £800 / $1,000 per violation for snowshoeing or number rotation)
• Carrier-level blocking of your phone numbers or messaging campaigns
• Suspension of messaging capabilities by our telecommunications provider

You are solely responsible for any carrier penalties, fines, or charges incurred as a result of your messaging activity. Such penalties will be added to your next invoice or charged to your payment method on file.

10. Your Responsibilities

By using the messaging features of the Service, you acknowledge and agree that:

• You are solely responsible for the content of all messages sent through your account and for ensuring compliance with all applicable laws, regulations, and this Policy
• You will maintain accurate records of consent for all recipients and make such records available to us upon request within 5 business days
• You will maintain and honour an up-to-date suppression list (Do Not Message list) of all recipients who have opted out
• You will respond promptly to any compliance enquiries from Line, our telecommunications providers, or regulatory authorities
• You will not send messages that are misleading about your identity, the purpose of the message, or the nature of your business
• You will indemnify Line against any claims, fines, penalties, or losses arising from your messaging activity, as set out in our Terms of Service

11. Fair Use

Messaging allowances included in your subscription plan are subject to fair use. We reserve the right to impose additional charges, throttle sending rates, or suspend messaging capabilities if your usage significantly exceeds normal business communication patterns. We will notify you before taking any such action where reasonably practicable.

12. Changes to This Policy

We may update this Policy from time to time to reflect changes in law, regulation, carrier requirements, or our business practices. We will notify you of material changes by email or through the Service at least 30 days before they take effect. Your continued use of the messaging features of the Service after the effective date of any changes constitutes your acceptance of the updated Policy.

13. Contact Us

If you have questions about this Policy, need to report a messaging compliance issue, or wish to request our proof-of-consent documentation requirements, please contact us:

• Email: hello@useline.io
• Website: https://useline.io