Compliance texting examples

What's OK by text, what goes to email, and what isn't allowed

UserAlertX texts only you — your own verified phone, never anyone else. Even so, phone carriers have rules for every business text message, and we follow them. Here are real examples of what goes by text, what goes to your email instead, and what isn't allowed at all. We keep adding to this page.

Good to go by text

Personal, event-driven alerts — something happened, and you want to know:

Example alert	Kind
Claude Code: task finished - 14 files changed, all tests pass.	AI agent done
Your agent wants to deploy to production. Reply Y to approve, N to stop.	TeXt Approval
Backup done: 42 GB, no errors.	Script / cron job
Server web1: disk 92% full.	Server needs you
CPU hit 95% on build box for 10 minutes.	Monitoring
Front door opened at 2:14 am.	Home automation
Garage freezer is at 15 F - door may be open.	Sensor
Price drop: the Dell monitor you watch is now $189.	Page watcher
Printer is low on toner; paper back in stock at Costco.	"In stock" is fine — it's not about the stock market
New mail from your boss: Re: Q4 plan.	Agent inbox
Reminder: dentist at 3 pm tomorrow.	Reminder

Sent to your email instead

Carriers don't allow some topics in a text at all, even one you send to yourself: stocks and trading, crypto, loans and debt, cannabis, tobacco and alcohol, firearms, gambling, and adult content. Before every text, UserAlertX checks the alert. If it touches one of these, the whole alert is emailed to you and your phone gets a short "check your email" notice. Nothing is lost. The check is careful on purpose, so it also catches some everyday words:

Example alert	Why it goes to email
AAPL crossed $250.	Stock price
TSLA is down 4% today.	Stock price
Earnings report posted for your company.	Stock market words
Bitcoin is above $70,000.	Crypto
Mortgage rates fell to 5.9%.	Loans
Your bets settled: +$40.	Gambling
Wine club shipment arriving tomorrow.	Alcohol
The beer fridge is at 50 F.	Alcohol — an everyday alert, but the word "beer" is enough
Poker night moved to Friday.	Gambling word
Gun safe opened.	Firearms word
Weed the garden today - rain coming.	"Weed" — the check can't tell gardening from cannabis

Tip: reword an everyday alert to keep it a text — "Garage fridge is at 50 F" goes by text. Or send those alerts by email from the start (see What can't be sent by text).

Not allowed at all

• Texting anyone else. Alerts go only to your own verified number — this is built in, not a setting. There is no way to text a friend, a customer or a list.
• Marketing, ads, promotions or spam of any kind, even to yourself as a test of a campaign.
• Unlawful, hateful, threatening, harassing or abusive content.
• Deceptive messages — for example, a text made to look like it came from your bank, a delivery company or a government office.
• Trying to get around the check (misspelling a restricted word on purpose, for example). The rule protects the phone numbers every UserAlertX account shares.

Good habits

• Say what happened and what's next: "Backup failed: disk full on nas1" beats "Error 17".
• Use full links (https://yoursite.com/report), not public link shorteners — carriers often block shortened links.
• Keep secrets out of texts: no passwords, keys or card numbers. Send a link to where you can see them safely.
• Use email for the long version: a short text plus the details by email (method=email) is often best.

Why the rules are strict

These are the US carriers' rules for every business that sends text messages, through the text-message providers we use. Carriers can fine each message that breaks them and shut down the numbers that sent it — for everyone using those numbers. Keeping every account inside the rules keeps texting working for all of us.

See also: What can't be sent by text · FAQ: carrier-restricted alerts · Terms · Not sure about an alert? Ask support