(Ecofin Agency) - On November 29, 2018, Tunisia’s telecommunications regulator will launch a new service helping telecom subscribers reduce the number of advertising messages sent to them by operators.

The service baptized "STOP SMS", is the result of an agreement signed in April 2018 by the regulator, the national institution for the protection of personal data (Instance Nationale de Protection des Données Personnelles -INPDP) and the consumers’ organization. It will be executed via a toll-free number that the telecom regulator will reveal on November 29, 2018.

For subscribers bothered by the numerous advertising SMS they receive daily and even late at night, the regulator’s initiative shows its strong implication in the protection of consumers’ interest. It is also a call to order issued to Maroc Telecom, Orange and Inwi on the use of consumers’ personal data.  

Article 27 of the organic law number 63 of July 27, 2004, on personal data protection, stipulates that " with the exception of cases mentioned in the organic law or already existing law, the processing of personal data can be done with the express and written agreement of the person concerned".