South Africans were hit with 17.5 billion spam calls in the first half of 2026, and the government is now requiring companies to verify who they are contacting before campaigns go out.

The National Consumer Commission (NCC), South Africa's consumer watchdog, launched a National Opt-Out Registry on Wednesday, according to an official announcement. The system allows consumers to block unwanted direct marketing before it reaches them, shifting responsibility from individuals to the companies making the calls.

The registry forms part of a wider government push against the country's growing spam-call problem. Under the new framework, marketers must register with the system and cleanse their contact lists every month before running campaigns. Fintechs, banks, telecommunications operators, insurers, retailers and other digital businesses will need to build consumer opt-outs directly into their marketing systems. Because the cleansing obligation recurs monthly rather than at a one-off sign-up, compliance becomes a standing part of campaign operations rather than a single registration exercise.

The scale of the problem is documented in Truecaller's 2026 South Africa Spam Report, which recorded 17.5 billion spam calls between January and June — a 25.2% increase over the same period in 2025. Spam SMS messages also surged 58.9% to 3.7 billion over the period.

Those figures help explain why the NCC is moving beyond encouraging consumers to ignore or block unwanted messages, and is instead placing obligations on the companies sending them. They also underline that the problem is not confined to voice calls: text messaging is the faster-growing channel of the two.

Parks Tau, South Africa's Minister of Trade, Industry and Competition, said the growing sophistication of spam and scams demanded a stronger regulatory response.

“South Africans are becoming more alert, but alertness alone cannot substitute for a proper regulatory backstop,” Tau said at the launch. “Scam and marketing networks are becoming more sophisticated, using spoofing and artificial intelligence to reach consumers.”

The registry gives effect to Section 11 of the Consumer Protection Act, which grants consumers the right to block unwanted direct marketing communications. Tau framed the issue as one of data and privacy, noting that companies increasingly rely on personal information to reach potential customers.

“Section 14 of our Constitution guarantees everyone the right to privacy. A's phone number, email address and time are not raw material to be harvested and traded without their consent,” he said.

For companies, however, the challenge lies in translating that principle into their existing marketing infrastructure.

The NCC said direct marketers have been able to register on the registry since September 15 and have until December 2026 to complete their registration. They will then have five months, from December to April 2027, to cleanse their marketing lists and prepare to interface with the system at no cost.

From May 2027, registered consumers will be able to pre-emptively block direct marketers from contacting them. That puts the registry's consumer-facing effect several months after the launch, with the intervening window reserved for marketer onboarding and list cleansing.

Compliance will require companies to account for the registry before launching campaigns, potentially forcing changes to customer databases, campaign-management tools and internal compliance processes.

“This is a momentous occasion for consumers who have for years been flooded with unwanted direct marketing,” said Hardin Ratshisusu, the NCC's Acting Commissioner. “The National Opt-Out Registry will promote responsible direct marketing ensuring consumers are protected from unwanted direct marketing through spam calls, texts, e-mails and other electronic communication.”

The NCC said the phased rollout gives businesses time to prepare, and that it will publish further guidance while running a consumer education programme.