---
title: "Email and SMS marketing campaign checklist (Spam Act consent, sender identification and unsubscribe)"
url: "https://ailawframework.com/precedents/technology-media-and-telecommunications-it-contracts/email-and-sms-marketing-spam-act-checklist"
type: "precedent"
site: "AI Law Framework"
id: "a24-email-and-sms-marketing-spam-act-checklist"
area_id: "A24"
kind: "checklist"
ai_level: "green"
version: 1
task_ids: ["A24-T20261018-10"]
law_stated_as_at: "2026-10-18"
---

# Email and SMS marketing campaign checklist (Spam Act consent, sender identification and unsubscribe)

> A pre-send checklist for a commercial email, SMS or instant message campaign with an Australian link: consent evidence, sender identification, a functional unsubscribe facility, list hygiene, third-party senders and…

Canonical page: https://ailawframework.com/precedents/technology-media-and-telecommunications-it-contracts/email-and-sms-marketing-spam-act-checklist  
Law stated as at: 2026-10-18

Site index for agents: https://ailawframework.com/llms.txt

A pre-send checklist for a commercial email, SMS or instant message campaign with an Australian link: consent evidence, sender identification, a functional unsubscribe facility, list hygiene, third-party senders and AI-generated content.

## Key facts

- Kind: Checklist. Steps or checks to work through and tick off.
- Practice area: [Technology, Media & Telecommunications / IT Contracts](https://ailawframework.com/precedents/technology-media-and-telecommunications-it-contracts.md)
- Jurisdictions: Australia, Commonwealth
- AI level: Green. AI can do most of the drafting. A lawyer still reviews the result.
- Law stated as at: 2026-10-18
- Status: Maintained. Checked on 2026-10-18 against the 3 authorities it cites, for Australia and Commonwealth.

## When to use it

Use before each campaign or new marketing automation flow, and when auditing a client’s marketing lists. Use with the client’s privacy policy; direct marketing also engages the Privacy Act.

## Used for these tasks

- [Check an email or SMS marketing campaign against the spam rules](https://ailawframework.com/practice/technology-media-and-telecommunications-it-contracts.md#A24-T20261018-10)

## How AI may be used

Inside this checklist AI may check campaign drafts and list records for consent, sender and unsubscribe elements, with the lawyer settling the checklist and the consent rules once at setup and reviewing any flagged item.

**AI may:**

- Check each message template for the sender identification, contact details and unsubscribe statement
- Match the send list against consent records and the unsubscribe and suppression lists, and report gaps
- Flag messages whose content or call to action makes them commercial

**AI must not:**

- Must not decide that a recipient has given inferred consent; the consent basis is settled by the lawyer at setup
- Must not remove or obscure the unsubscribe facility in AI-generated variants of a message
- Must not generate recipient lists from scraped or harvested addresses

**The lawyer checks:**

- The consent basis for each list segment is documented and fits Schedule 2 of the Spam Act
- Sender identification and contact details are accurate and will stay valid for at least 30 days (s 17)
- The unsubscribe facility is clear, conspicuous and works, and requests are actioned within the period the Act requires (s 18)
- Third-party senders and affiliates are contractually bound to the same rules

## Authorities

- [Spam Act 2003 (Cth) s 16 (commercial electronic messages with an Australian link must not be sent unless the account-holder consented, or the message is a designated commercial electronic message)](https://classic.austlii.edu.au/au/legis/cth/consol_act/sa200366/s16.html)
- [Spam Act 2003 (Cth) s 17 (messages must clearly and accurately identify who authorised them and how to contact them, valid for at least 30 days)](https://classic.austlii.edu.au/au/legis/cth/consol_act/sa200366/s17.html)
- [Spam Act 2003 (Cth) s 18 (messages must contain a clear and conspicuous functional unsubscribe facility)](https://classic.austlii.edu.au/au/legis/cth/consol_act/sa200366/s18.html)

## Full text and drafting notes

The full text and the drafting notes are not part of this public page. Signed-in firm accounts can read them at https://ailawframework.com/precedents/technology-media-and-telecommunications-it-contracts/email-and-sms-marketing-spam-act-checklist and through the signed-in MCP connector https://ailawframework.com/mcp/firm.

*Practice guidance for planning and review. Confirm current primary sources and the requirements of the actual matter. This is general information, not legal advice.*