TCPA

47 U.S.C. § 227; 47 C.F.R. § 64.1200

Telephone Consumer Protection Act

In force since December 20, 1991

Who it applies to

  • Anyone making calls or sending texts using an automatic telephone dialling system or an artificial or prerecorded voice
  • Senders of unsolicited advertising faxes

Consumer rights

  • Access / know — not granted
  • Correction — not granted
  • Deletion / erasure — not granted
  • Portability — not granted
  • Opt out of sale / sharing — grantedStop the business selling or sharing your personal data with third parties.
  • Opt out of targeted advertising — not granted
  • Opt out of profiling — not granted
  • Limit sensitive data use — not granted
  • Human review of automated decisions — not granted
  • Non-discrimination — not granted
  • Appeal a refusal — not granted
  • Private right of action — grantedSue directly, rather than relying on a regulator to enforce on your behalf.

Obligations

Consent model
Opt-in
Universal opt-out signal
Not required
Risk assessments
Not required
Data protection officer
Not required
Records of processing
Not required
Processor contract
Not required
Right to cure
None — enforcement may follow immediately
Data broker registration
Not required

Breach notification

To individuals
Not addressed by this Act
To the regulator
Not required by this law
What triggers it
Not addressed by this Act

Penalties

Headline
$500 per violation, trebled to $1,500 for a wilful or knowing violation
Private right of action
Yes — individuals can sue directly
Notes
Per-message statutory damages with no cap make the TCPA the highest-volume privacy litigation statute in the United States.

Sources