With primaries heating up and the fall general election just around the corner, your phone is likely lighting up with political texts—requests for donations, reminders to vote, or messages promoting a particular candidate. While some people may find these messages informative, many consider them annoying. But are they actually illegal?

A federal court has ruled that the National Do Not Call Registry does not apply to texts. In Jones v. Blackstone Medical Services, LLC, No. 1:24-cv-01074-JEH-RLH, 2025 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 138371 (C.D. Ill. July 21, 2025), the court held that the “do-not-call” provision of the Telephone Consumer Protection Act (TCPA) applies only to phone calls and not texts.

A new court ruling says you can be sued just for leaving your company name out of a text. Yes, really. In Newell v. JR Capital LLC, No. 25-1419 (E.D. Pa. July 16, 2025), a judge held that a consumer could sue under the TCPA because the company sent five marketing texts that didn’t include its name.

In recent months, a growing trend has emerged: plaintiffs filing TCPA class actions that claim companies violated federal calling time restrictions by reaching out before 8:00 a.m. or after 9:00 p.m. local time, even when the person may have given consent.

Let’s say your child wants to download Minecraft. He’s prompted to enter a parent’s phone number before proceeding, and he puts in yours. Moments later, your phone buzzes with a text asking for parental consent. While this seems like a responsible move under the COPPA, you pause. You never agreed to receive that text. Does this comply with the TCPA?