This guide is designed to help you understand the Global Messaging Policies used by the majority of carriers, as well as details regarding use cases that are prohibited from use.General Rules of Content Message senders should take pre-emptive measures and employ tools that monitor and prevent unwanted message content, including content which: Is unlawful, harmful, abusive, malicious, misleading, harassing, violent, obscene/illicit, or defamatory Is deceptive (e.g., phishing messages intended to access private or confidential information), including deceptive links Invades privacy Causes safety concerns Incites harm, discrimination, hate, or violence Intended to intimidate Includes malware Threatens consumers Does not meet age-gating requirements Political Use Cases Political messaging will be evaluated on a case-by-case basis. Such discretion will not be exercised with the intent of favor or disfavor of any political party or candidate. Due to high volumes of consumer complaints, messages containing the following content are not appropriate and may be blocked by carriers if sent over A2P (toll-free/10DLC) messaging, regardless of opt-in status: Spoofing messages or snowshoed content across multiple numbers Data sharing between message senders Malicious content Phishing content Inappropriate Use Cases Due to high volumes of consumer complaints, messages containing the following content are not appropriate and may be blocked by carriers if sent over A2P (toll-free/10DLC) messaging, regardless of opt-in status. If messaging traffic is identified by a provider as associated with one of the following use cases, there will be little that SkySwitch can do to assist in the removal of blocking.Social marketing Collections Financial services, whether account notifications, marketing, collections, or billing for: High-risk/subprime lending/credit card companies Auto loans Mortgages Payday loans Short-term loans Student loans Debt consolidation/reduction/forgiveness InsuranceCar Insurance Health Insurance Gambling, Casino, and Bingo Gift cards Sweepstakes Free prizes Investment opportunities Lead generation Recruiting Commission programs Credit repair Tax relief Illicit or illegal substances (including Cannabis) Work from home Get rich quick UGGS and RayBan campaigns Phishing  Fraud or scams Cannabis  Deceptive marketing SHAFT: Sex, Hate, Alcohol, Firearms or Tobacco Additional Prohibited Practices Below you will find several other messaging methods and techniques that are prohibited from use. Snowshoe Messaging Snowshoe Messaging is a technique used to send messages from more source phone numbers or shortcodes than are needed to support an application’s function. Snowshoe Messaging is often used to dilute reputation metrics and evade filters. Message senders should not engage in snowshoe messaging. Service providers should also take measures to prevent snowshoe messaging. Certain cases with similar campaigns may use different numbers. In that case, it is important for message senders to identify their messages with a distinct brand and URL naming convention. If there is any doubt about campaign content, we suggest submitting use case proposals or questions to the SkySwitch Support Team. Proxy Numbers Message senders may utilize a phone number as a proxy number, which functions as a relay point between possibly large sets of phone numbers and/or frequently changing phone numbers in certain wireless messaging use cases. For example, a driver for a ride-sharing service may need to communicate with a prospective passenger to confirm a pick-up location. The proxy phone number functions as a  conference call bridge phone number, allowing the driver and passenger to communicate without either party having to reveal their personal phone number. A 10-digit NANP phone number used as a proxy is typically a means to connect two individuals, but proxy numbers are commonly reused in a way that may create volumes of messaging traffic exceeding typical consumer operation. Given the use of proxy numbers to facilitate bulk messaging traffic among multiple 10-digit NANP phone numbers, the proxy number qualifies as non-consumer (A2P) messaging traffic and may be subject to additional validation, vetting, and monitoring.Spoofed Phone Numbers Message number spoofing includes the ability of a message sender to cause a message to display an originating number for the message, which is not assigned to the message sender, or when a message sender originates a message through a service provider other than the service provider to which reply messages will be delivered or received. Message number spoofing should be avoided and should comply with all applicable laws.