How to stop marketing calls and SMS in the UAE (DNCR)
Step by step for du, e&/Etisalat and Virgin Mobile - how to add your number to the state DNCR register, check the status and report spam.
Unknown numbers selling fur coats, insurance and “investments” are a familiar thing. In the UAE there is a state register against this - the DNCR (Do Not Call Registry): add your number and companies are forbidden to send you advertising calls, SMS and marketing messages. The system operates under TDRA oversight and is mandatory for all operators and telemarketers. Here is how to sign up with each carrier.
du
Add your number:
- SMS: send
BLOCKorDNCRto 1012; - app: du App → Marketing Preferences → enable Do Not Call Registry (DNCR).
Check the status: resend DNCR to 1012 - the system reports the status.
The status is also shown in Marketing Preferences.
Complain: the du Spam Report form, or SMS Report <number> to 1012 (for
example Report 971501234567).
Etisalat / e&
Add your number:
- SMS: send
DNCRto 1012; - app: e& UAE App → Support → DNCR → activate marketing-call blocking.
Check the status: SMS IDNCR to 1012. To remove the block -
UDNCR to 1012.
Complain: the form on the DNCR page, or in the app Support → DNCR Complaint. You will need: your number, the spammer’s number, the complaint type.
Virgin Mobile
Add your number: Virgin Mobile App → Settings → “Third-party voice call control” → turn on the switch and confirm adding your number to DNCR.
Check / complain: in the app; the complaint form is on the Virgin Mobile DNCR Support page.
What to know
- DNCR registration is free, and the number stays in the register indefinitely;
- service messages from your own operator will still arrive - the register blocks marketing only;
- companies are obliged to check DNCR before campaigns, with fines for breaches.
If the spam doesn’t stop: don’t answer suspicious calls, block the number on your phone, keep the SMS and screenshots, file an official complaint through your operator, and for systematic breaches - contact TDRA.