Are telemarketing and fake calls threatening the future of phone communication?

ON February 21, 2024, the first enforcement notice relating to direct marketing was sent to FT Rams Consulting. The main reasons for the notice were that the responsible party did not, (1), stop sending direct marketing after the recipient opted out and, (2), did not obtain the recipient's consent before sending them electronic direct marketing.

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The Information Regulator released a media statement shortly before the enforcement notice, which had some very interesting statements. Advocate Pansy Tlakula, the chairperson of the Information Regulator had this to say:

“Our leniency regarding direct marketing through unsolicited electronic communications is going to be a thing of the past because responsible parties (public or private bodies) ignore the provisions of section 69 of POPIA and infringe on the rights of data subjects.

“In response to this, we are also putting together a guidance note which will clearly spell out the dos and don'ts of processing personal information for the purposes of direct marketing by means of unsolicited electronic communication”

In 2025 it is still difficult for South Africans to accept any calls due to an influx of telemarketing and fake calls. Many are opting to only accept WhatsApp calls, which is not always practical for businesses.