Fifty-two state bankers associations today urged the Federal Communications Commission to issue new rules to help stem the flow of illegal texts and calls to consumers. The rules had been scheduled to be considered during the FCC’s meeting on Sept. 26 but were removed from the agenda two days before the meeting.
The associations’ letter follows the American Banker Association’s advocacy to push the agency to act. Over the past two weeks, ABA has sent two letters and held two meetings with FCC staff to urge the agency to adopt the rules without delay.
“Texts that impersonate a bank were the most common form of text message scam reported to the Federal Trade Commission in 2022,” the state bankers associations said. “Banks are committed to stopping criminals who seek to defraud their customers, but banks cannot achieve this goal alone. We urge the Commission to combat illegal texts and calls by adopting the order without delay.”
The rules under consideration would require mobile wireless providers that originate text messages to block all texts from a particular source when notified by the FCC of illegal texts from that source, except under limited circumstances. Existing rules require terminating providers — but not originating providers — to block all texts from a particular number when notified by the FCC of illegal texts from that number.
