Businesses that use RingCentral to send short message service (SMS) or multimedia messaging service (MMS) messages must maintain a Privacy Policy to comply with its SMS/MMS Content Policies.

This article explains what RingCentral's SMS/MMS Content Policies require, what to include in your Privacy Policy to comply with RingCentral's requirements, and what happens if you don't have a Privacy Policy.

Our Privacy Policy Generator makes it easy to create a Privacy Policy for your business. Just follow these steps:

  1. At Step 1, select the Website option or App option or both.

    TermsFeed Privacy Policy Generator: Create Privacy Policy - Step 1

  2. Answer some questions about your website or app.

    TermsFeed Privacy Policy Generator: Answer questions about website - Step 2

  3. Answer some questions about your business.

    TermsFeed Privacy Policy Generator: Answer questions about business practices  - Step 3

  4. Enter the email address where you'd like the Privacy Policy delivered and click "Generate."

    TermsFeed Privacy Policy Generator: Enter your email address - Step 4

    You'll be able to instantly access and download your new Privacy Policy.



What is RingCentral?

RingCentral is a communications platform that offers several AI-fueled products and services, including the following:

  • Cloud communications, including business cloud calling and text messaging systems
  • Omnichannel customer contact solutions
  • Video conferencing
  • Conversation intelligence, including conversation summarizations and automated training for employees
  • Pre-built app integrations, application programming interfaces (APIs), and software development kits (SDKs)

RingCentral's SMS and MMS are core features of all of its plans. Its SMS and MMS capabilities enable RingCentral's clients to quickly send notifications, confirmations, promos, and reminders directly to their customers' mobile devices.

SMS messages are short, text-based messages that can be sent to and from mobile devices. They are typically limited to a maximum length of 160 characters. MMS messages can include text, images, audio, and video clips.

RingCentral's Enhanced Business SMS service includes SMS templates, group SMS/MMS, and targeted SMS campaigns, among other features:

Screenshot of RingCentral services list

What Does RingCentral's SMS/MMS Content Policies Require?

RingCentral's SMS/MMS Content Policies require its Enhanced Business SMS customers to meet the following requirements:

  • Send no more than 50 text messages per originating number per minute.
  • Get written consent from recipients before sending marketing, promotional or informational messages.
  • Don’t use purchased lists or lead lists from third parties when sending SMS messages.
  • Clearly explain how users can opt-out of receiving informational, marketing, or promotional messages.
  • Don’t use link shorteners or non-branded domains for embedded links.
  • Register with The Campaign Registry (TCR) before sending SMS messages.

RingCentral's SMS/MMS Content Policies lists its requirements, including limiting how many messages users send per minute, providing opt-out information, and registering with TCR before sending any SMS messages:

RingCentral SMS MMS Content Policies: Enhanced Business SMS Guidelines section

RingCentral is a Campaign Service Provider (CSP) registered with TCR. TCR is a centralized platform where CSPs can register customers' brands and campaigns to enable 10-digit long code (10DLC) brand messaging.

Currently, brands cannot register directly with TCR and need to register with their CSP. You can register with TCR through RingCentral by signing into your RingCentral account and completing the SMS TCS Registration Form.

If you don't register your SMS with TCR, you won't be able to send text messages through RingCentral.

TCR requires all businesses registering for a campaign to have a website that contains a link to their Privacy Policy.

Registration will be rejected unless the Privacy Policy contains certain information, including:

RingCentral's TCR SMS Customers Best Practices document explains that applicable businesses must include a link to their Privacy Policy on their websites. The Privacy Policy must include information about what personal information is being collected and how it is being used and shared, as well as clarifying that SMS opt-in or phone numbers collected for SMS purposes are not shared with third parties:

RingCentral TCR SMS Customers Best Practices: Privacy Policies section

What is a Privacy Policy?

A Privacy Policy is a legal document that explains how you collect, use, and share personal information and lets users know how they can exercise their privacy rights.

Personal information is information that can be used to identify an individual, such as names, addresses, Social Security and ID numbers, birthdays, and biometric data.

A Privacy Policy typically includes the following clauses:

  • How personal information is collected
  • How personal information is used
  • Whether personal information is shared with any third parties
  • How long personal data is retained and what the organization does with data once it has fulfilled its purposes
  • How personal information is protected
  • How users can exercise their privacy rights
  • The organization’s contact information

Crawford Thomas Recruiting's Privacy Notice contains clauses about how it collects, uses, and discloses personal information, SMS messaging consent, and how it keeps data safe:

Crawford Thomas Recruiting Privacy Notice: Collection and Use of Personal Information

How to Write a Privacy Policy to Comply With RingCentral SMS/MMS Content Policies Requirements

You must obtain consent from recipients before you send any promotional, marketing, or informational text messages. Methods of obtaining consent can include website forms with an SMS opt-in checkbox, and verbal, written, or customer-initiated consent. All methods of obtaining consent must include a link to your Privacy Policy.

RingCentral requires users' Privacy Policies to include the following clauses:

  • What personal information they collect
  • How they collect, use, and share personal information
  • An explanation that information obtained during the SMS consent process will not be shared with third parties

In addition, businesses can either include the following clauses in their Privacy Policy or make the information available in a standalone Terms of Service agreement:

  • Information about the types of messages you send
  • Standard messaging disclosures

Let's look at the clauses a RingCentral-compliant Privacy Policy should include.

What Personal Information You Collect

Your Privacy Policy should let users know the types of personal information you collect, such as names and phone numbers.

Benchmark's Privacy Policy outlines the types of data it collects, including names, birthdays, Social Security numbers, copies of ID cards, mailing addresses, phone numbers, and email addresses:

Benchmark Privacy Policy: Information we collect clause

How You Collect, Use, and Share Personal Information

You should explain how you collect, use, and disclose personal information. For example, you might collect information directly from consumers when they submit a contact form, or indirectly through cookies. Personal information can be used for a variety of reasons, including communication, advertising, and research purposes.

Carlton Senior Living's Privacy Policy contains a comprehensive description of the categories of information it has collected about consumers over the previous 12 months, including the categories and source(s) of the information and its reasons(s) for collecting information:

Carlton Senior Living Privacy Policy: Collect information clause excerpt

This clause explains that the information customers provide when consenting to receive SMS messages will not be shared with any third parties.

Northeastern REMC's Privacy Policy states that it does not share SMS consent and phone numbers with any third parties or affiliates:

Northeastern REMC Privacy Policy Outline section

The Types of Messages You Intend to Send

This clause explains what kinds of messages will be sent to recipients. For example, customers might receive order or delivery notifications, while job applicants might expect to receive application status updates or onboarding resources.

This clause can be included within your Privacy Policy, or as a standalone Terms of Service agreement.

Benchmark's Privacy Policy lets users know that they may receive text messages relating to upcoming appointments and meetings, mortgage status updates, and follow up on cases and support requests:

Benchmark Privacy Policy: SMS clause

Standard Messaging Disclosures

Your Privacy Policy or Terms of Service agreement should include the following standard messaging disclosures:

  • Messaging frequency may vary.
  • Message and data rates may apply.
  • You can opt out at any time by texting "STOP."
  • For assistance, text "HELP" or visit our [Privacy Policy URL] and [Terms of Service URL].

Carlton Senior Living's Privacy Policy explains that by providing a phone number and opting in to receive SMS communications, users are consenting to receive SMS text messages from the company. It includes standard messaging disclosures about messaging and data rates and how to opt out of receiving future messages:

Carlton Senior Living Privacy Policy: SMS Communications clause

What Happens If You Don't Have a Privacy Policy?

If you don't have a Privacy Policy, your SMS TCR application will be rejected and you won't be able to send SMS messages.

The RingCentral Support page concerning business registration explains that businesses must maintain a website or social media page that contains a Privacy Policy or their submission will be rejected and their ability to send text messages will be blocked:

RingCentral Support: Privacy Policy requirement section

Summary

RingCentral is a communications platform that offers several AI-powered services, including business SMS and MMS systems.

Users must meet the following requirements to comply with RingCentral SMS/MMS Content Policies:

  • Limit message frequency to 50 messages per originating number per minute.
  • Get written consent from recipients before sending marketing, promotional, or informational messages.
  • Don’t use purchased lists or third-party lead lists when sending SMS text messages.
  • Describe how users can opt out of informational, marketing, or promotional messages.
  • Avoid using link shorteners or non-branded domains for embedded links.
  • Register with TCR before sending SMS text messages.

TCR requires businesses to maintain a website or social media page containing a link to their Privacy Policy.

A Privacy Policy is a legal document that explains how you handle users' personal information and how they can exercise their privacy rights.

A RingCentral-compliant Privacy Policy should include the following clauses:

  • The types of personal information you collect
  • How you collect, use, and share personal information
  • A statement that you don’t share any information obtained during the SMS consent process
  • Information about the types of text messages recipients can expect to receive
  • Standard messaging disclosures

Your SMS TCR application will be rejected and you won't be able to send SMS messages if you don't have a RingCentral-compliant Privacy Policy.

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