Electronic communications (email / SMS) — everything Part 1006 requires

Synthesis page: the Reg F requirements that attach specifically to email and text-message debt collection. This grounds the comms dispatcher and two-way SMS/email work.

Authority

12 CFR 1006.6(d)(3)–(5) (bona-fide-error safe-harbor procedures for email and text), 12 CFR 1006.6(e) (opt-out notice in every electronic communication), 12 CFR 1006.42 (delivery standard + E-SIGN for electronic required disclosures), 12 CFR 1006.34(c)(3)(v) and (d)(4) (electronic validation notices). Issued and enforced by the CFPB.

Operative text

1. Opt-out notice — required in EVERY electronic communication or attempt

(e) Opt-out notice for electronic communications or attempts to communicate. A debt collector who communicates or attempts to communicate with a consumer electronically in connection with the collection of a debt using a specific email address, telephone number for text messages, or other electronic-medium address must include in such communication or attempt to communicate a clear and conspicuous statement describing a reasonable and simple method by which the consumer can opt out of further electronic communications or attempts to communicate by the debt collector to that address or telephone number. The debt collector may not require, directly or indirectly, that the consumer, in order to opt out, pay any fee to the debt collector or provide any information other than the consumer's opt-out preferences and the email address, telephone number for text messages, or other electronic-medium address subject to the opt-out request. — 12 CFR 1006.6(e)

2. The third-party-disclosure safe harbor frame

(3) Reasonable procedures for email and text message communications. A debt collector maintains procedures that are reasonably adapted, for purposes of FDCPA section 813(c), to avoid a bona fide error in sending an email or text message communication that would result in a violation of paragraph (d)(1) of this section if those procedures include steps to reasonably confirm and document that: (i) The debt collector communicated with the consumer by sending an email to an email address described in paragraph (d)(4) of this section or a text message to a telephone number described in paragraph (d)(5) of this section; and (ii) The debt collector did not communicate with the consumer by sending an email to an email address or a text message to a telephone number that the debt collector knows has led to a disclosure prohibited by paragraph (d)(1) of this section. — 12 CFR 1006.6(d)(3)

3. Email — the three qualifying address sources (§ 1006.6(d)(4))

(4) Procedures for email addresses. For purposes of paragraph (d)(3)(i) of this section, a debt collector may send an email to an email address if: (i) Procedures based on communication between the consumer and the debt collector. (A) The consumer used the email address to communicate with the debt collector about the debt and the consumer has not since opted out of communications to that email address; or (B) The debt collector has received directly from the consumer prior consent to use the email address to communicate with the consumer about the debt and the consumer has not withdrawn that consent; or (ii) Procedures based on communication by the creditor. (A) A creditor obtained the email address from the consumer; (B) The creditor used the email address to communicate with the consumer about the account and the consumer did not ask the creditor to stop using it; (C) Before the debt collector used the email address to communicate with the consumer about the debt, the creditor sent the consumer a written or electronic notice, to an address the creditor obtained from the consumer and used to communicate with the consumer about the account, that clearly and conspicuously disclosed: (1) That the debt has been or will be transferred to the debt collector; (2) The email address and the fact that the debt collector might use the email address to communicate with the consumer about the debt; (3) That, if others have access to the email address, then it is possible they may see the emails; (4) Instructions for a reasonable and simple method by which the consumer could opt out of such communications; and (5) The date by which the debt collector or the creditor must receive the consumer's request to opt out, which must be at least 35 days after the date the notice is sent; (D) The opt-out period provided under paragraph (d)(4)(ii)(C)(5) of this section has expired and the consumer has not opted out; and (E) The email address has a domain name that is available for use by the general public, unless the debt collector knows the address is provided by the consumer's employer. (iii) Procedures based on communication by the prior debt collector. (A) Any prior debt collector obtained the email address in accordance with paragraph (d)(4)(i) or (ii) of this section; (B) The immediately prior debt collector used the email address to communicate with the consumer about the debt; and (C) The consumer did not opt out of such communications. — 12 CFR 1006.6(d)(4)

4. SMS — qualifying telephone numbers, the 60-day freshness window, reassigned-number check (§ 1006.6(d)(5))

(5) Procedures for telephone numbers for text messages. For purposes of paragraph (d)(3)(i) of this section, a debt collector may send a text message to a telephone number if: (i) The consumer used the telephone number to communicate with the debt collector about the debt by text message, the consumer has not since opted out of text message communications to that telephone number, and within the past 60 days either: (A) The consumer sent the text message described in paragraph (d)(5)(i) of this section or a new text message to the debt collector from that telephone number; or (B) The debt collector confirmed, using a complete and accurate database, that the telephone number has not been reassigned from the consumer to another user since the date of the consumer's most recent text message to the debt collector from that telephone number; or (ii) The debt collector received directly from the consumer prior consent to use the telephone number to communicate with the consumer about the debt by text message, the consumer has not since withdrawn that consent, and within the past 60 days the debt collector either: (A) Obtained the prior consent described in paragraph (d)(5)(ii) of this section or renewed consent from the consumer; or (B) Confirmed, using a complete and accurate database, that the telephone number has not been reassigned from the consumer to another user since the date of the consumer's most recent consent to use that telephone number to communicate about the debt by text message. — 12 CFR 1006.6(d)(5)

5. Sending required disclosures electronically (§ 1006.42)

(a) Sending required disclosures —(1) In general. A debt collector who sends disclosures required by the Act and this part in writing or electronically must do so in a manner that is reasonably expected to provide actual notice, and in a form that the consumer may keep and access later. — 12 CFR 1006.42(a)(1)

(b) Requirements for certain disclosures sent electronically. To comply with paragraph (a) of this section, a debt collector who sends the notice required by § 1006.34(a)(1)(i)(B), or the disclosures described in § 1006.38(c) or (d)(2)(i), electronically must do so in accordance with section 101(c) of the Electronic Signatures in Global and National Commerce Act (E-SIGN Act) (15 U.S.C. 7001(c)). — 12 CFR 1006.42(b)

(Full § 1006.42 treatment, including the (a)(2) exceptions and the flag that no "§ 1006.42(d) alternative procedures" exist in the codified rule: see ./required-disclosures-delivery.md.)

6. Electronic validation notices (§ 1006.34)

(v) If the debt collector sends the validation notice electronically, a statement explaining how a consumer can, as described in paragraphs (c)(4)(i) and (ii) of this section, dispute the debt or request original-creditor information electronically. — 12 CFR 1006.34(c)(3)(v)

(4) Validation notices delivered electronically. If a debt collector delivers a validation notice electronically, a debt collector may, at its option, format the validation notice as follows: (i) Prompts. Any prompt required by paragraph (c)(4)(i) or (ii) or paragraph (d)(3)(iii)(B) or (d)(3)(vi)(B) of this section may be displayed electronically as a fillable field. (ii) Hyperlinks. Hyperlinks may be embedded that, when clicked: (A) Connect a consumer to the debt collector's website; (B) Connect a consumer to the Bureau's debt collection website as disclosed pursuant to paragraph (c)(3)(iv) of this section; or (C) Permit a consumer to respond to the dispute and original-creditor information prompts required by paragraphs (c)(4)(i) and (ii) of this section. — 12 CFR 1006.34(d)(4)

7. Time-of-day rule applies to electronic media too ("unusual time")

(i) At any unusual time, or at a time that the debt collector knows or should know is inconvenient to the consumer. In the absence of the debt collector's knowledge of circumstances to the contrary, a time before 8:00 a.m. and after 9:00 p.m. local time at the consumer's location is inconvenient; or — 12 CFR 1006.6(b)(1)(i)

Note on "unusual medium": the codified rule text of § 1006.6(b)(1) speaks of unusual/ inconvenient times and places; a medium-specific "unusual medium" rule does not appear in the regulation text fetched. Treatment of a consumer's statement that a specific medium (e.g. SMS) is inconvenient is addressed in the Official Interpretations (Supplement I to Part 1006, comments to § 1006.6(b)) — not yet pulled into this KB; do not rely on a paraphrase. Until that page exists, the safe posture is: honor any consumer statement that a channel is inconvenient as a per-channel block, in addition to the (e) opt-out.

Plain English

Interpretation — the quotes above win on any conflict.

Every outbound email/SMS (including attempts) must carry an opt-out statement — clear and conspicuous, describing a reasonable and simple method, per-address/per-number scoped, no fee and no extra information demanded (§ 1006.6(e)).

The (d)(4)/(d)(5) procedures are a bona-fide-error safe harbor against accidental third-party disclosure (§ 1006.6(d)(1) via FDCPA § 813(c)) — they are not a licensing precondition for using email/SMS, but a collector without them bears full strict-liability risk if a message reaches the wrong person. Treat them as mandatory.

Email address is sendable if ANY of:

1. Consumer-direct use: consumer emailed the collector about the debt from it, no opt-out since; or
2. Consumer-direct consent: consent received directly from the consumer, not withdrawn; or
3. Creditor hand-off: creditor got it from the consumer AND used it about the account without being told to stop AND sent the transfer/opt-out notice (5 required contents) with an opt-out window of at least 35 days from the date the notice is sent, AND the window expired without opt-out, AND the domain is generally available to the public (no known employer-provided addresses); or
4. Prior-collector hand-off: prior collector qualified it under 1–3, the immediately prior collector used it about the debt, and the consumer didn't opt out.

SMS number is sendable if EITHER:

1. Consumer texted the collector about the debt from that number, no opt-out since, AND within the past 60 days either the consumer texted again from it OR a complete and accurate database confirmed the number wasn't reassigned since the consumer's most recent text; or
2. Consumer gave direct prior consent for texts about the debt, not withdrawn, AND within the past 60 days the consent was obtained/renewed OR the reassigned-number database check was done against the most recent consent date.

Practical rule: every SMS send needs a consent/contact event or a reassigned-number DB check within the trailing 60 days, plus documented opt-out state.

Delivering required disclosures by email/SMS: any required disclosure sent electronically must be reasonably expected to give actual notice and be keepable (§ 1006.42(a)(1)). The 5-day validation notice, verification of the debt, and original-creditor information additionally require E-SIGN § 101(c) consent (§ 1006.42(b)). An electronic validation notice must add the (c)(3)(v) statement on how to dispute electronically, and may use fillable fields and the three permitted classes of hyperlink.

Timing: the 8:00 a.m.–9:00 p.m. consumer-local-time presumption applies to communications and attempts generally — schedule email/SMS dispatch inside the window.

Traps / edge cases

• The § 1006.6(e) opt-out statement is required on attempts too — including limited-content or undelivered messages — and is per specific address/number.
• Honoring an opt-out: (d)(4)(i)/(d)(5) qualification evaporates the moment the consumer opts out or withdraws consent — opt-out processing must be effectively immediate in the dispatcher.
• The 35-day figure is a minimum opt-out window in the creditor's pre-transfer notice ((d)(4)(ii)(C)(5)) — it is not a waiting period for consumer-direct consent paths (i) — and the collector must not email until the window has expired without opt-out ((d)(4)(ii)(D)).
• The 60-day SMS freshness clock is measured at each send; a number can qualify, go stale, and re-qualify via a new inbound text, renewed consent, or a fresh reassigned-number DB check. "Complete and accurate database" in practice means the FCC Reassigned Numbers Database.
• Employer-domain emails are excluded under the creditor hand-off path ((d)(4)(ii)(E)); the general-public-domain test doesn't apply to the consumer-direct paths, but known workplace-inbox risk still cuts against "reasonably expected actual notice" and § 1006.6(b)(3).
• § 1006.6(d)(3)(ii): even a qualified address/number becomes unusable once the collector knows it has led to a prohibited third-party disclosure.
• E-SIGN consent (§ 1006.42(b)) is a separate, additional state from (d)(4)/(d)(5) channel-qualification — model both.
• Reg F applies to consumer debt only — commercial claims are outside Part 1006 (state law and contract still apply).

Related

• ../fdcpa/validation.md
• ./communications-opt-outs.md — § 1006.6(b)–(c) times/places, cease-communication
• ./validation-notice.md — § 1006.34 content + electronic formatting
• ./disputes-original-creditor.md — electronic dispute responses
• ./required-disclosures-delivery.md — § 1006.42 / E-SIGN detail + § 1006.100 retention
• ./overview.md
• ../cfpb-guidance/debt-collection-faqs.md — CFPB FAQs on limited-content messages & electronic comms