{"id":857741,"date":"2026-04-20T15:00:00","date_gmt":"2026-04-20T13:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/businesstech.co.za\/news\/?p=857741"},"modified":"2026-04-20T14:20:24","modified_gmt":"2026-04-20T12:20:24","slug":"say-goodbye-to-spam-calls-as-you-know-them-in-south-africa","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/businesstech.co.za\/news\/telecommunications\/857741\/say-goodbye-to-spam-calls-as-you-know-them-in-south-africa\/","title":{"rendered":"Say goodbye to spam calls as you know them in South Africa"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

The Minister of Trade, Industry & Competition, Parks Tau, has amended the Consumer Protection Act to protect consumers from spam calls.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Gazetted on 15 April 2026, the new regulations fundamentally change how consumers can protect themselves from direct marketers, shifting the burden away from individuals and placing it on the companies.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The new amendments mean that South Africans no longer have to unsubscribe from every company individually.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Registering a “pre-emptive block” on the National Consumer Commission (NCC) registry can legally stop all registered direct marketers from contacting you simultaneously.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Ahmore Burger-Smidt, director and regulatory head at Werksmans Attorneys, said the changes mark a long-awaited shift from a fragmented system to one that is both enforceable and practical.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThe practical machinery to curb unsolicited electronic marketing under the CPA is finally in force,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

A key loophole in previous legislation\u2014particularly under the Protection of Personal Information Act (POPIA)\u2014allowed telemarketers to make an initial call to request consent. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

This \u201cfirst contact\u201d approach has now been explicitly outlawed for consumers registered on the new system.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cMost importantly, marketers are strictly prohibited from contacting any consumer who has registered a pre-emptive block,\u201d Burger-Smidt explained.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The regulations also introduce clearer definitions and operational requirements for businesses.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

One of the most significant is the concept of \u201ccleansing\u201d, which requires companies to regularly remove opted-out consumers from their databases every 30 days.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThis is important because it transforms the opt-out right into a recurring operational duty on marketers,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

This means companies must actively check and update their contact lists against the NCC\u2019s registry monthly, ensuring consumer preferences are continuously respected.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The rules apply broadly, with the definition of \u201cdirect marketer\u201d expanded to include any person or entity engaged in marketing, regardless of whether they use traditional phone calls, SMS, email, or digital platforms.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThe term \u2018direct marketer\u2019 is expressly defined to capture any person who engages in direct marketing, thereby pulling both traditional and digital outreach actors within the compliance perimeter,\u201d Burger-Smidt noted.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The message to direct marketers is now clear<\/h2>\n\n\n
\n
\"\"<\/a>
Ahmore Burger-Smidt, Director and Regulatory Head at Werksmans Attorneys.<\/em><\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n

To participate in the system, marketers must first register with the NCC using a dedicated Direct Marketer Registration Form. Without this step, they are effectively barred from conducting lawful marketing outreach.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cFailure to register forecloses lawful outreach, regardless of any consent arrangements a marketer may believe it holds,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

For consumers, the process is designed to be simple and accessible. A standardised Consumer Pre-emptive Block Form allows individuals to register their details and opt out of unwanted communications in a single step.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The registry itself must remain continuously available, aside from unforeseen technical issues.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Burger-Smidt said the broader goal is to create a transparent and accountable marketing environment, where bad actors can no longer hide behind anonymity.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cTransparency rules and prohibitions on unidentifiable dissemination will make it harder for bad actors to hide behind anonymity,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Over time, the expectation is that widespread adoption of the registry will lead to a measurable decline in spam calls and messages across South Africa.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cWith accessible registration, clear guidance, and a centralised registry, the expectation is that adoption will grow and with it, a measurable decline in spam communications,\u201d Burger-Smidt said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

She believes the message to direct marketers is now clear. \u201cIf a consumer says \u2018do not contact me\u2019, the law now ensures that marketers must listen.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

The Minister of Trade, Industry & Competition, Parks Tau, has gazetted major changes to the Consumer Protection Act targeting spam calls. <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":92,"featured_media":857758,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[21],"tags":[25236,20371,853,23638,9482],"class_list":["post-857741","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-telecommunications","tag-consumer-protection-act","tag-department-of-trade-industry-and-competition","tag-south-africa","tag-spam-calls","tag-werksmans-attorneys"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/businesstech.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/857741","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/businesstech.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/businesstech.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/businesstech.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/92"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/businesstech.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=857741"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/businesstech.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/857741\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":857759,"href":"https:\/\/businesstech.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/857741\/revisions\/857759"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/businesstech.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/857758"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/businesstech.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=857741"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/businesstech.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=857741"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/businesstech.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=857741"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}