11 July 2025
If your business uses SMS to communicate with customers, changes are coming that you can’t afford to ignore. The ACMA SMS Sender ID Register is set to become mandatory, and it marks a significant step forward in combatting scams and restoring confidence in SMS communications across Australia.
Here’s what you need to know and, most importantly, what your organisation needs to do about it.
For years, scammers have exploited alphanumeric SMS sender IDs like “ATO,” “NAB,” or even your brand name to impersonate trusted organisations. When a message from a scammer appears in the same thread as genuine messages, it becomes incredibly difficult for the average consumer to tell the difference.
The damage runs deep. Customers lose money and trust, while businesses suffer reputational harm they may never fully recover from. These scams are now so widespread that they rank among the most dangerous phone and SMS scams in Australia.
It’s for these reasons that the ACMA is stepping in hard.
An alphanumeric sender ID is a custom identifier that appears as the “from” name on a text message. The ID replaces the usual phone number with a brand name, allowing legitimate businesses to build recognition and credibility.
But here’s the issue:
Until now, anyone could claim to be anyone. There was no mechanism to prove who owned a sender ID.
To close that loophole, ACMA has introduced the SMS Sender ID Register — a central database that links legitimate sender IDs to verified businesses. With it, telcos can block unregistered alphanumeric IDs from sending texts.
A significant new feature includes an automatic warning tag. The tag is “Likely SCAM,” which will appear on texts from senders not listed in the register. That over-stamp alone has the potential to enhance mobile security the same way we do at VoicePlus.
The register is already active, and by December 2025, all alphanumeric SMS sender IDs must be formally registered. Businesses must do this through their telecom provider or a managed mobility specialist like us at VoicePlus.
Failing to act could result in your messages being blocked — or worse, being marked as a scam.
If you send texts under a branded sender ID, you need to register. More than a box-ticking exercise, registering is a direct investment in your brand’s integrity and your customers’ safety.
Through our managed mobility solutions, we can help you stay compliant while strengthening trust across digital channels.
For everyday users, this change means one thing: greater peace of mind. Seeing “Likely SCAM” on a message is a clear signal not to engage, but even with new protections, consumers still need to stay alert and report text message scams at Scamwatch.gov.au.
The ACMA SMS Sender ID Register is a smart, necessary move in the ongoing effort to stop SMS scams in Australia. But technology only goes so far — businesses must act now, and consumers must remain vigilant.
If you’re a business using alphanumeric SMS sender IDs, don’t wait. Reach out and let’s make your SMS capabilities safe, trusted, and compliant.
If you’re a consumer, watch out for texts that come with the “Likely Scam” warning and report scams to Scamwatch.gov.au.
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