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In the US, for SMS messages I reply "STOP" (without quotes) and that seems to do something (at the carrier level?) to block future messages.

js2 2y ago
This works for me too with Verizon. And on iOS, under Settings > Messages, I enable "Filter Unknown Senders".
teeray 2y ago
For political messages, this doesn’t work—they ignore it. It just validates that you saw the message (and rewards the behavior).
- TheBigSalad 2y ago
  If the messages are automated this works and is legally required. Many political messages may be a template but come from real humans. It's a way around the law.
  - datadrivenangel 2y ago
    Human pushes the button so it's not a machine. Does it still count if a human is supervising an autoclicker?
  - Froedlich 2y ago
    Call from another jurisdiction, and good luck trying to enforce any laws. Back in the old days spam call centers were often in the Caribbean for that reason, but now that phone calls are so cheap, they might be anywhere.
- interbased 2y ago
  This is why I don’t answer any calls from a number I don’t know. It just validates to a potential spam system that my number belongs to a real person.
  - Froedlich 2y ago
    Exactly. Which I have tried to explain (unsuccessfully, alas) too many times. We only answer calls from numbers we recognize. This has caused some interesting issues, though. My wife answered one of the unknown-callers on her cellphone anyway, and it turned out to be from her doctor's office. Who couldn't (or wouldn't) explain why the clerk was using per personal cellphone to call patients, or how they got the number. We still maintain a land line, and only eight individuals have my cellular number, only five have hers. Yet somewhere a dataset was purchased, and both our cellular numbers have propagated throughout the Electronic Medical Records system, often as the only contact number.
colinbartlett 2y ago
For me this works only to stop future messages from that campaign. All the campaigns seem to buy and sell lists so I just get a different message from a different campaign at a different number. Here are the most recent offenders: Katrina Christiansen Harry Dunn Arizona for Abortion Access Turnout PAC Yvette Clarke Josh Stein Ty Pinkins Democratic Majority Tammy Baldwin Democrats United
- gretch 2y ago
  Yes this was my experience too. It was like a hydra. Say no to 1 campaign, get 2 more new campaigns tomorrow

js2 2y ago

This works for me too with Verizon. And on iOS, under Settings > Messages, I enable "Filter Unknown Senders".

teeray 2y ago

For political messages, this doesn’t work—they ignore it. It just validates that you saw the message (and rewards the behavior).

TheBigSalad 2y ago
If the messages are automated this works and is legally required. Many political messages may be a template but come from real humans. It's a way around the law.
- datadrivenangel 2y ago
  Human pushes the button so it's not a machine. Does it still count if a human is supervising an autoclicker?
- Froedlich 2y ago
  Call from another jurisdiction, and good luck trying to enforce any laws. Back in the old days spam call centers were often in the Caribbean for that reason, but now that phone calls are so cheap, they might be anywhere.
interbased 2y ago
This is why I don’t answer any calls from a number I don’t know. It just validates to a potential spam system that my number belongs to a real person.
- Froedlich 2y ago
  Exactly. Which I have tried to explain (unsuccessfully, alas) too many times. We only answer calls from numbers we recognize. This has caused some interesting issues, though. My wife answered one of the unknown-callers on her cellphone anyway, and it turned out to be from her doctor's office. Who couldn't (or wouldn't) explain why the clerk was using per personal cellphone to call patients, or how they got the number. We still maintain a land line, and only eight individuals have my cellular number, only five have hers. Yet somewhere a dataset was purchased, and both our cellular numbers have propagated throughout the Electronic Medical Records system, often as the only contact number.

colinbartlett 2y ago

For me this works only to stop future messages from that campaign. All the campaigns seem to buy and sell lists so I just get a different message from a different campaign at a different number. Here are the most recent offenders: Katrina Christiansen Harry Dunn Arizona for Abortion Access Turnout PAC Yvette Clarke Josh Stein Ty Pinkins Democratic Majority Tammy Baldwin Democrats United

gretch 2y ago
Yes this was my experience too. It was like a hydra. Say no to 1 campaign, get 2 more new campaigns tomorrow