SMS Compliance, Keywords & Opt-Out Management Guide

Target Role: Staff Members, Intake Specialists, Volunteer Coordinators & Administrators

This guide explains carrier compliance rules (TCPA, CTIA, 10DLC) for SMS communications within Dream Center Connect, detailing how automated opt-outs, keyword handling, and message suppression protect constituents and maintain regulatory standing.

Overview

Dream Center Connect uses automated keyword classification and carrier-level suppression to comply with industry regulations (TCPA and 10DLC guidelines). When constituents or volunteers text regulatory keywords from their mobile devices, the platform immediately respects their communication preferences without creating spurious intake tickets.

graph TD
    Inbound["Inbound SMS Received"] --> Classify{"Keyword Classification"}
    Classify -- "STOP, CANCEL, UNSUBSCRIBE..." --> OptOut["Record Opt-Out in sms_opt_outs<br/>Send Single Confirmation SMS<br/>Suppress All Future Outbound SMS"]
    Classify -- "HELP, INFO, AYUDA..." --> Help["Send Informational Regulatory SMS<br/>No Intake Ticket Created"]
    Classify -- "START, UNSTOP, YES..." --> OptIn["Remove Opt-Out Record<br/>Send Reactivation SMS"]
    Classify -- "Normal Text (e.g. 'I need help with food')" --> Intake["Create Need Ticket / Route to AI Intake Triage"]

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1. Digital Opt-In Consent (Web Intake)

Before automated or staff SMS messages may be transmitted to any mobile number, carriers require documented explicit consent.

• Public Intake Form (/request): Constituents explicitly opt in by checking an optional, unchecked consent box when providing their mobile number.
• Auditable Record: The platform preserves the opt-in timestamp, terms acceptance, and notification preferences within the constituent record.
• Privacy Assurance: Constituents are informed that their phone numbers are strictly used for care dispatch and will never be shared with third parties for marketing purposes.

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2. Compliance Keywords & Exact Token Matching

Supported Keywords

Category	Recognized Tokens (Case-Insensitive)	System Action	Ticket Created?
Opt-Out	STOP, STOPALL, UNSUBSCRIBE, CANCEL, END, QUIT, ARRET, ALTO	Phone marked as opted-out for the organization. Confirmation SMS sent.	No
Help & Support	HELP, INFO, AYUDA	Immediate regulatory help reply with organization contact information.	No
Opt-In / Resubscribe	START, UNSTOP, YES, CONTINUE	Phone un-suppressed in sms_opt_outs and constituent profile updated.	No

Strict Exact Token Matching Rule

To ensure constituents seeking assistance are never accidentally opted out or denied care, the system applies strict single-token matching:

• Exact Keyword Match: A message containing solely STOP, stop, help, or Ayuda (with surrounding whitespace ignored) is treated as a compliance command.
• Conversational Messages: A message such as “I need help getting food for my kids” or “Please stop calling during work hours” contains additional conversational tokens and is never intercepted as a compliance keyword. These messages route directly to the standard intake and assistance pipeline.

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3. Automated Message Suppression

Once a phone number is opted out for an organization:

1. Staff Chat & Need Messages:
   • In the Need Chat Dialogue, the “SMS” and “Both (SMS + Email)” dispatch channels are disabled.
   • An alert banner clearly informs staff: “Constituent has opted out of SMS messages for this organization. Outbound SMS disabled.”
2. Automated Background Dispatch:
   • The background message worker (dcc-cp) checks the suppression ledger (sms_opt_outs) before dispatching any queued message.
   • Any outbound SMS destined for an opted-out number is automatically dropped and marked suppressed (with the sole exception of the mandatory one-time opt-out confirmation).
3. Volunteer Shift Reminders:
   • The automated shift reminder worker verifies volunteer opt-out status prior to scheduling or sending reminder SMS messages. Opted-out volunteers will not receive automated shift reminders.

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4. Staff & Administrator Opt-Out Actions

Constituents or volunteers may request verbally, in person, or via phone call to stop receiving text messages. Authorized staff and administrators can manually record an opt-out on their behalf.

Who Can Opt-Out a User?

• Org Admins: Can opt-out any constituent or volunteer within the organization.
• Partner Admins: Can opt-out constituents or volunteers associated with their partner organization.
• Staff: Can opt-out individuals if assigned the comm:opt_out permission (or the sms_communicator / sms_manager access profiles).

Opting Out a Constituent

1. Navigate to Constituents and select the constituent’s record.
2. Under the Contact Details card, locate the SMS Status section.
3. If the constituent is currently subscribed, click the button labeled “Opt-Out of SMS”.
4. Confirm the prompt explaining that future SMS messages will be immediately suppressed.
5. The constituent’s profile will immediately update with a [🚫 SMS Opted Out] chip.

Opting Out a Volunteer

1. Navigate to Volunteers > Volunteer Roster.
2. Locate the volunteer row.
3. On desktop, click “Opt-Out of SMS” (or select “Opt-Out of SMS” from the mobile overflow menu ⋮).
4. Confirm the dialog prompt. The volunteer row will update with the [🚫 SMS Opted Out] indicator.

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5. How Constituents & Volunteers Re-Subscribe

Legal & Carrier Mandate: No Manual Staff Opt-In

Under TCPA regulations and mobile carrier compliance frameworks (including 10DLC carrier guidelines), staff and administrators cannot manually opt a constituent or volunteer back into SMS messaging. Once a phone number is opted out, carriers legally require explicit handset-originated consent.

If a constituent or volunteer wishes to resume receiving SMS messages:

1. Instruct the user to text from their mobile phone:
   • Have them send a text message containing the word START (or UNSTOP or YES) to the organization’s SMS phone number.
2. Automated Restoration:
   • The system instantly removes the phone number from the suppression ledger.
   • The [🚫 SMS Opted Out] chip is removed from their profile.
   • Standard automated communications, chat messages, and shift reminders resume immediately.