Acceptable Use Policy

1. General principles

1.1 Use the service for legitimate business communications. Use it lawfully. Don’t use it in ways that harm other people, our network, our regulatory standing, or the wider UK telecoms industry.

1.2 You are responsible for everything done on your account, by you, your staff, your agents, or anyone using credentials issued to you.

2. Prohibited use

You must not use the service:

• for any unlawful, fraudulent, criminal, defamatory, obscene, or threatening purpose;
• to make nuisance, hoax, silent, malicious, or abusive calls;
• to harass, threaten, or intimidate anyone;
• to impersonate another person or business in ways intended to deceive;
• to operate scam-calling, “wangiri” callback fraud, premium-rate revenue-share fraud, or artificially-inflated traffic (AIT);
• to send unsolicited marketing calls in breach of the Privacy and Electronic Communications Regulations 2003 (PECR), the Telephone Preference Service (TPS), or the Corporate Telephone Preference Service (CTPS);
• to resell, rent, sub-licence, or otherwise make the service available to third parties without our written agreement;
• to attempt to access, probe, or compromise any part of our network, platform, or systems other than the parts we make available to you;
• in any way that contravenes Ofcom General Conditions of Entitlement, the Communications Act 2003, or any other UK law or regulation applicable to electronic communications.

3. Blocked destinations

3.1 The following outbound destinations are blocked by default on Membership accounts to protect against fraud:

• Premium-rate numbers (084, 085, 087, 09, 118)
• UK payphone outbound
• International destinations classed as high-fraud-risk by our upstream carrier or industry intelligence

3.2 You may request unblocking of specific destinations or categories in writing. We will discuss the business reason and may require additional security measures (PIN authorisation, IP whitelisting, an increased deposit). Once unblocked, you are liable for all charges to those destinations including any fraudulent use of your account.

3.3 NumberGroup does not sell 084, 085, 087, 09, or 118 numbers. Numbers purchased from us must not be routed via any third-party provider as part of a Premium Rate Service, Calling Card Service, International Access Number, or Dial-Through Service.

4. Account security and fraud

4.1 You are responsible for the security of:

• any PBX, SIP phone, router, or other equipment you use with the service;
• any SIP credentials, account passwords, or API keys we issue to you;
• your own internal systems and the practices of your staff.

4.2 Most telecom fraud begins with compromised customer-side credentials. Keep passwords confidential, change them regularly, apply security updates promptly, and restrict access to people who need it.

4.3 You remain liable for all charges incurred on your account, including charges from fraudulent calls placed using your equipment or credentials, whether by you, your staff, or by an unauthorised third party.

4.4 If you become aware of any actual or suspected security breach, theft, fraud, or unauthorised use, contact us immediately on 0800 310 1010 so we can help you secure the account.

5. Nuisance and silent calls

5.1 You must not use the service in ways that contravene Ofcom’s rules on persistent misuse, abandoned calls, or silent calls. The Ofcom statement of policy on the persistent misuse of an electronic communications network or service applies to outbound campaigns conducted through us.

5.2 You must cooperate with us, Ofcom, and any other competent authority on the investigation of suspected nuisance calling originating from your account.

6. Marketing and unsolicited calls

6.1 If you make outbound marketing calls, you must comply with PECR, the TPS, the CTPS, and applicable Ofcom guidance. You are responsible for screening your call lists against these registers and for obtaining lawful consent where required.

6.2 You must present a valid CLI (Calling Line Identifier) on outbound calls. You must not spoof or withhold CLI in ways prohibited by Ofcom General Condition C6.

7. Emergency calls (999/112)

7.1 Calls delivered over VoIP rely on power and internet. If either fails, calls to 999 or 112 will not work over the service. You must:

• inform staff using the service of this limitation;
• keep address information on your account accurate so emergency services can locate the caller;
• maintain an alternative means of contacting emergency services from the location where the service is used (a mobile phone is sufficient).

7.2 Misuse of emergency services numbers (hoax calls, persistent non-emergency calls) is a criminal offence and a material breach of this AUP.

8. Above-average usage and campaigns

8.1 If you expect a significant increase in inbound or outbound call volume — a marketing campaign, a launch, a TV ad, a press release — tell us at least 5 working days in advance so we can ensure capacity.

8.2 We may, at our discretion, apply temporary call restrictions to protect the wider network from congestion caused by unannounced traffic spikes.

9. Numbers and porting

9.1 You must not advertise or publicise a number until we have confirmed it is live and tested on your account.

9.2 You must not request a port-in of a number that you do not have the right to take with you, or that has unresolved obligations to another provider.

9.3 We will not knowingly process a port of one of your numbers to a customer or downstream provider where we have reason to believe the number will be used in connection with fraud, persistent misuse, or a service the gaining provider is not licensed to operate.

10. What happens if you breach this AUP

10.1 Depending on severity, we may contact you to discuss, place temporary restrictions or call barring, suspend service under clause 8 of the General Conditions, or end your Agreement under clause 9 of the General Conditions.

10.2 Where breach is material, repeated, or in connection with fraud or regulatory contravention, we may end the Agreement immediately with no compensation due to you.

10.3 We will report unlawful or fraudulent use to the appropriate authorities (police, Ofcom, ICO, PSA, action fraud) where required by law or where we judge it necessary to protect other customers or the public.

11. Changes to this AUP

11.1 We may update this AUP from time to time. Material changes — affecting your rights, obligations, or what is and is not allowed — take effect after 30 days’ notice by email and on numbergroup.com/terms/aup.

11.2 You may end your Agreement before the change takes effect at no charge under clause 9 of the General Conditions.

12. Questions

Email help@numbergroup.com or call 0800 310 1010 (UK business hours).