The long-awaited Do Not Contact system is finally set to be enforced next April – 16 years after it was first mooted – but the direct marketing industry is already moving into targeted digital advertising and away from traditional contact databases.
Government first proposed an opt-out registry when the Consumer Protection Act (CPA) was signed in 2008, coming into effect in 2011. As far back as 2013, the National Consumer Commission (NCC) said the database would be operational within four months.
Yesterday, trade, industry and competition minister Parks Tau launched the National Opt-Out Registry, saying it would give South Africans a single, free mechanism to block unwanted direct marketing calls, SMSes and other electronic communications.
Tau adds there was previously “no central registry. Consumers had to chase marketers one by one.”
NCC acting commissioner Hardin Ratshisusu says: “This is a momentous occasion for consumers who have for years been flooded with unwanted direct marketing. The National Opt-Out Registry will promote responsible direct marketing, ensuring consumers are protected from unwanted direct marketing through spam calls, texts, e-mails and other electronic communication.”
Calling time
Direct marketers have been able to register since 15 September, Tau says, with five months from December to cleanse their lists at the NCC’s cost before the commission enforces the law in full as of 15 April 2027.
Consumers will be able to start blocking unwanted direct marketing from May 2027, according to a statement from the Department of Trade, Industry and Competition (DTIC).
Law firm ENSafrica notes the NCC published draft guidelines for compliance with the opt-out registry regulations on 2 October, with public comment open until 17 October. They are not binding on the NCC, the National Consumer Tribunal or the courts, although anyone interpreting or applying the CPA must take them into account, it adds.
Under the CPA, marketers who contact consumers despite their registered opt-outs face enforcement action. Contraventions can be referred to the National Consumer Tribunal, which may impose an administrative fine of up to R1 million, or 10% of the marketer’s annual turnover in the preceding financial year, whichever is greater.
In serious cases, the draft guidelines also provide for criminal prosecution, with convicted marketers liable to a fine, or up to 12 months’ imprisonment, ENSafrica says.
Brand on the line
“To the companies that appoint agencies and call centres to market on their behalf, make sure they are registered and compliant. It is your brand that’s on the line,” notes Tau.
Under the draft guidelines, marketers remain responsible for compliance when a third-party markets for them, and that responsibility extends to agencies, franchises and branches, ENSafrica says.
According to Truecaller’s 2026 South Africa Spam Report, South Africans received 17.47 billion spam calls between January and June 2026, up 25.2% on the same period in 2025. Spam SMSes rose by 58.9%, to 3.71 billion.
“The Opt-Out Registry will therefore bring relief to South Africans bombarded with unwanted direct marketing communication,” the DTIC says in its statement.
Yet, David Dickens, CEO of the Direct Marketing Association of Southern Africa (DMASA), tells ITWeb that traditional database-driven marketing is becoming less important as businesses increasingly turn to targeted digital advertising.
Meta data
“Everybody, I can assure you, our guys are moving into digital marketing using Meta, Google and Facebook ads, so they don’t need to hold people’s data.”
These platforms allow advertisers to target consumers by age, location and interests without maintaining extensive contact databases, reducing compliance costs and risks. “Our information is the currency we pay to use those services,” Dickens says.
Dickens explains that larger companies are combining digital advertising with established customer databases, which remain valuable but gradually lose their reach as consumers opt-out.
The threat of substantial penalties is another incentive to reduce reliance on traditional databases. “The market is shifting because they want to offset their risk.”
Caller ID
The DMASA is a voluntary industry body representing more than 300 direct marketing companies and operates its own opt-out mechanism to prevent members from contacting consumers who have registered their objections.
Dickens stresses, however, that the national registry still has a role in protecting consumers against unwanted marketing calls, particularly from businesses that fail to honour opt-outs. “It’s not useless. It’s not.”
The DMASA also suggested the NCC consult with the Independent Communications Authority of SA to ensure direct marketers are tied to numbers that enable them to be identified as opposed to ones that do not allow tracing or inbound calls, says Dickens.
Tau explains that companies can no longer hide behind ever-changing dial-out numbers. “No hidden numbers, no untraceable sources.”
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