Compliance and opt-outs

UgaText enforces Uganda Communications Commission (UCC) and East African telecom anti-spam directives through a real-time 21-rule compliance engine. Every message is checked before it reaches the carrier.

Content rules

Sender identity

Every broadcast must come from a verified alphanumeric Sender ID (3 to 11 characters) or the default UGATEXT. Impersonating banks, government agencies, or telecom operators (for example MTN, AIRTEL, BOU, URA) without authorization is rejected with 403 COMPLIANCE_BLOCKED.

Prohibited content

These are blocked automatically (decision BLOCK):

Phishing links
Fake Mobile Money PIN prompts
Unlicensed loan scams
Betting or gambling broadcasts to unverified lists
Fraudulent impersonation

Promotional quiet hours

Promotional and marketing broadcasts may only be sent between 07:00 and 21:00 EAT (Africa/Kampala). Transactional messages such as OTPs, payment receipts, and security alerts can be sent 24/7.

URL and link shortener inspection

Shortened URLs that hide malicious redirects or credential-harvesting domains are flagged for review (decision REVIEW) or blocked.

Opt-outs

Include an opt-out line

Marketing and promotional campaigns must end with clear unsubscribe instructions, for example Reply STOP to unsubscribe.

Suppression list

A number is added to your opt-out suppression list immediately when:

The recipient replies with an opt-out keyword: STOP, UNSUBSCRIBE, CANCEL, END, QUIT, or OPT OUT.
You add it from the dashboard or through the Opt-out API.

Sending promotional SMS to a suppressed number returns 422 NUMBER_SUPPRESSED_ON_OPT_OUT_LIST.

In bulk broadcasts, suppressed numbers are filtered out before billing, so you are not charged for them.

Opt back in

When a recipient replies START or SUBSCRIBE, the number is removed from the suppression list and receives a confirmation SMS.

Opt-out API

Manage your suppression list with the /api/opt-outs endpoints. They are also available under /api/sms/opt-outs.

Action	Endpoint
List opted-out numbers	`GET /api/opt-outs` (or `GET /api/opt-outs/list`)
Add a number	`POST /api/opt-outs/add`
Remove a number	`POST /api/opt-outs/remove` (or `/delete`)
Bulk import numbers	`POST /api/opt-outs/import`
Export as CSV	`GET /api/opt-outs/export`
Filter recipients before sending	`POST /api/opt-outs/check`
Get audit events	`GET /api/opt-outs/audit-logs`
Receive carrier replies	`POST /api/opt-outs/inbound-webhook`

List opted-out numbers

GET /api/opt-outs accepts these query parameters:

Parameter	Default	Description
`page`	`1`	Page number.
`limit`	`20`	Results per page, up to 100.
`search`		Filter by phone number.
`source`		`sms_reply`, `manual`, or `import`.

The response contains success, records, total, page, limit, totalPages, and stats.

Add, remove, and import numbers

{
  "phone": "+256772123456",
  "notes": "Requested via support",
  "campaignId": "cmp_123",
  "senderId": "UGATEXT"
}

{
  "phone": "+256772123456",
  "reason": "Customer requested resubscription"
}

{
  "numbers": ["+256772123456", "+254712345678"],
  "notes": "CSV import"
}

GET /api/opt-outs/export downloads a CSV file of every opted-out number on your account.

Filter recipients before sending

POST /api/opt-outs/check splits a recipient list into numbers you can message and numbers that opted out.

Request

{
  "recipients": ["+256772123456", "+256700000000"]
}

Response

{
  "success": true,
  "allowed": ["+256700000000"],
  "skipped": ["+256772123456"],
  "summary": "1 allowed, 1 skipped (opted out)"
}

Audit log

GET /api/opt-outs/audit-logs returns the last 100 opt-out and opt-in events.

Inbound carrier webhook

POST /api/opt-outs/inbound-webhook receives recipient replies from the carrier and records opt-outs and opt-ins automatically.

{
  "from": "+256772123456",
  "message": "STOP"
}

Pre-flight compliance check

Validate message copy before you send with POST /compliance/inspect.

curl -X POST https://ugatext.com/api/v1/compliance/inspect \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -d '{
    "sender_id": "UGATEXT",
    "message": "Your verification code is 482910. Valid for 10 minutes."
  }'

Field	Description
`decision`	`APPROVE`, `REVIEW`, or `BLOCK`.
`risk_score`	Risk from 0 to 100.
`encoding`	`GSM-7` or `UCS-2`.
`sms_parts`	Number of segments the message uses.
`violations`	Rules the message breaks.
`warnings`	Issues that do not block sending.

Status	Code	Meaning
403	`COMPLIANCE_BLOCKED`	The message or Sender ID failed compliance checks.
422	`NUMBER_SUPPRESSED_ON_OPT_OUT_LIST`	The recipient opted out of promotional messages.

See Errors and limits for all error codes.

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Compliance and opt-outs

Content rules

Opt-outs

Include an opt-out line

Suppression list

Opt back in

Opt-out API

List opted-out numbers

Add, remove, and import numbers

Filter recipients before sending

Audit log

Inbound carrier webhook

Pre-flight compliance check

​Content rules

​Opt-outs

​Include an opt-out line

​Suppression list

​Opt back in

​Opt-out API

​List opted-out numbers

​Add, remove, and import numbers

​Filter recipients before sending

​Audit log

​Inbound carrier webhook

​Pre-flight compliance check

​Related errors

Content rules

Opt-outs

Include an opt-out line

Suppression list

Opt back in

Opt-out API

List opted-out numbers

Add, remove, and import numbers

Filter recipients before sending

Audit log

Inbound carrier webhook

Pre-flight compliance check

Related errors