Major mobile operators have vowed to tackle spam SMS messages involving gambling, obscenity and scams, in line with the National Broadcasting and Telecommunications Commission (NBTC)'s requests to safeguard members of the public.
Last week the NBTC held talks with several major telecom operators, asking them to gear up efforts to clamp down on unlawful SMS messages through self-regulation.
The regulator urged the operators to block SMS messages apparently linked with online gambling, swindling and obscenity, as well as share information about undesirable messages so a blacklist of content providers could be established.
Chakkrit Urairat, chief regulatory officer at SET-listed True Corporation, said the company's mobile operator, True Move H Universal Communication (TUC), acknowledged the scale of the problem of undesirable SMS messages and always tried to block them.
"The company is ready in all perspectives to comply with the NBTC direction immediately," Mr Chakkrit said.
He said the company has launched a notification centre to receive complaints about unlawful SMS messages, by calling 02-700-8085, adding that the company will check messages and block them.
TUC will continue to update an SMS sender blacklist.
Mr Chakkrit said any companies' partners that sent SMS through the TUC network were also told that they risk legal action if they deliver inappropriate messages.
TUC will also seek cooperation with other telecom operators to gather information about illicit SMS messages as part of collective efforts to block them.
Meanwhile, Advanced Info Service (AIS), the country's largest mobile operator by subscriber base, issued a statement reiterating that the company has always focused on safeguarding customers from unlawful SMS messages.
The company screens those who use SMS for their public relations campaigns, it said. Any messages deemed to cause annoyance or involve a scam are blocked and the senders put on the blacklist.
AIS indicated it will also work with other mobile operators to screen the SMS senders.
"AIS is ready to support and work with the NBTC and related agencies so as to safeguard customers and create a telecom service standard," the company said.
Any customers receiving undesirable SMS messages can report them to the AIS Call Centre via *137 in order to block them.