# SMS messaging terms - ApiTraffic > How ApiTraffic uses text messages: verification codes only, how you opt in, how often messages arrive, and how to get help or stop them. Source: https://dev.apitraffic.io/legal/messaging # Messaging terms Last updated August 17, 2026 ApiTraffic sends one kind of text message: a one-time verification code to a phone number you have added to your own account as a second authentication factor. We do not send marketing, promotional, or informational texts, and we do not text anyone who has not asked us to. ## What the program is **Program name:** ApiTraffic Account Verification. **Message type:** two-factor authentication (2FA) codes only. ApiTraffic is an API observability platform. Account holders can protect sign-in with a second factor: an authenticator app, a passkey, or a text message. Only the third of those involves SMS, and it is the only reason we ever send one. Text-message verification is optional. Every account can use an authenticator app or a passkey instead, and nothing about the product requires a phone number. ## How you opt in Consent is collected from the account holder, in the product, at the moment they add their own number. There is no other way onto this list: we do not accept phone numbers from third parties, we do not import lists, and we do not add a number collected for any other purpose. There are two places the opt-in appears, and both work identically: - **Security settings.** A signed-in user opens [Account → Security](https://dev.app.apitraffic.io/account/security), finds the *Text Message* card, and selects *Set up text messages*. - **Multi-factor enrollment.** A user setting up their second factor for the first time - including where an account administrator requires one - selects *Text me a code instead* on the enrollment screen. From there the workflow is the same, in this order: - The user types their own mobile number, including its country code. - Below the field, the consent language quoted in the next section is displayed with a checkbox. **The checkbox is unchecked.** Nothing pre-selects it, and it is cleared again if the user cancels or goes back. - The *Send code* button stays disabled until the user ticks the box themselves. Consent is not bundled into any other action: it is not part of signing up, not part of accepting our terms, and not a condition of using ApiTraffic. - On submit, the consent is recorded against the account - the time, the version of the disclosure that was on screen, and which screen it was given on - and only then is the first message sent. - The user enters the code from that message to confirm the number. An unconfirmed number is never used again. ## The consent language, verbatim This is the text shown beside the checkbox, exactly as it appears on screen: ☐ Yes, text one-time verification codes to this number when I sign in to ApiTraffic. • ApiTraffic sends only account verification codes to this number. We never send marketing or promotional texts to it. • Message frequency depends on how often you sign in - typically one message per sign-in, plus one when you set the number up. • Message and data rates may apply. • Reply HELP for help. Reply STOP to opt out at any time; opting out disables text codes for this account and you will need another way to sign in. The [Privacy Policy](/privacy), [Terms of Service](/terms) and this page are linked directly beneath it. ## The messages we send Setting a number up produces one message: ApiTraffic: 123456 is your verification code. It expires in 5 minutes. We will never ask you for it. Msg & data rates may apply. Reply HELP for help, STOP to opt out. Signing in afterwards produces one message per sign-in that uses this factor: ApiTraffic: 123456 is your verification code. It expires in 5 minutes. We will never ask you for it. Reply HELP for help, STOP to opt out. **Message frequency:** one message per sign-in that the user chooses to complete by text, plus one at setup. There is no schedule and no campaign - the user causes every message by signing in. A user may request at most 5 messages per hour. Our messages never contain a link. A verification code arriving with a URL is the shape of a phishing message, so ours do not have that shape. ## Getting help, and opting out **Reply HELP** to any message for support information, or email [support@apitraffic.io](mailto:support@apitraffic.io). **Reply STOP** to any message to opt out. No further messages are sent to that number. You can also remove the number entirely from Account → Security, which deletes it and its consent record from your account. Opting out disables text-message verification for that number. If it is the only second factor on the account, sign in with a backup code and set up an authenticator app or a passkey - otherwise you will not be able to complete sign-in. **Reply START** to resume messages to a number that previously opted out. Carriers are not liable for delayed or undelivered messages. ## What we do with the number The number is stored encrypted and used for one purpose: sending verification codes for the account it belongs to. The last four digits are kept unencrypted so a sign-in screen can show you which number a code is going to. **No mobile information is sold, and no mobile information - including phone numbers, opt-in data, or consent - is shared with third parties or affiliates for marketing or promotional purposes.** The number is disclosed only to the messaging carrier that has to deliver the message. See the [Privacy Policy](/privacy) for the full statement. Removing the factor deletes the number and the consent record. We do not keep a copy for any other use.