The TRA and the National Media Council Meet to Preserve Users’ Privacy in the UAE

Mobilk - the Telecommunications Regulatory Authority and the National Media Council examined ways of cooperation between the both sides in the area of observance and safeguarding the privacy of mobile phone users in the UAE, particularly in regard to reducing spam via mobile phones.

 

The both sides also discussed during the coordination meeting held yesterday at the Head office of the Council in Abu Dhabi-in the presence of Mohammad Nasser Al-Ghanim, TRA Director General and Ibrahim Al-Abed, Director General of the National Media Council-ways providing a sound check connections for users in the State with maximum satisfaction.

 

The meeting emphasized the need to adhere to regulatory policy regarding "spam and electronic communication" issued by the TRA on 30 December 2009, "annex" electronic SPAM messages through mobile".

 

H.E. Al Ghanim said: “The TRA gives great importance to this aspect in the telecommunications sector in the UAE therefore, has issued the necessary legislation to reflect the roles of both  licensees "Etisalat" and "du" in reducing the phenomenon of   spam promotional, and the TRA created mechanism for that  to allow those affected to report spam as instructed operators to provide the necessary technical resources that prevent access such messages to users and prevent the recurrence of access if the user reporting ".

 

Al Ghanim added “the TRA is keen to emphasize on the need to take the prior approval of the target before sending marketing messages via mobile phone, noting that regulatory policy established by the TRA in this regard stipulates  to respect the individual privacy and prohibits sending marketing messages via mobile phone between 9 pm and 7 am.

 

It is worth mentioning that the terms of regulatory policy for the TRA also apply to marketing messages via mobile phones issued by licensed "Etisalat" and "du" messaging service also applied sender blocking service by both licensees where can send free message to the number (7726) to block unwanted messages from a particular source.

 

H.E. Ibrahim Al-Abed said: "the importance of this subject in the light of the attention of the National Media Council to provide Media and information content in the communication networks and the media is committed to standards relating to this matter, which emphasized  to consider the individual privacy and their right to accept or reject the promotional and marketing content that sends to them from the different commercial providers.

 

The meeting comes after a telecommunications regulatory authority background carefully to complaints received about intrusive marketing text messages from the public and it aims to apply regulatory policy by the Authority to reduce send marketing messages without the consent of users to achieve the utmost respect for their privacy.