SMS Messaging Policy

Program identification

IQ Platform is operated by Apex Technology LLC. SMS alerts are sent via our toll-free number through Twilio, our SMS service provider. One-time sign-in codes are sent through Twilio Verify, Twilio's verification service (see §4).

Use case: transactional alerts about auction lots end users have chosen to track, and one-time sign-in codes that users ask for when they turn on two-step verification by text. IQ Platform does not send marketing or promotional SMS.

SMS is optional. Users can use IQ Platform entirely without providing a phone number; SMS consent is never a condition of using the service or making a purchase.

Step-by-step opt-in workflow

This is exactly what an end user does to opt in. The disclosure shown to the user in step 6 is reproduced verbatim in §3 below, see the live preview for the precise text and consent checkbox.

1. 1. User signs up at /auth/register (free account).
2. 2. User logs in.
3. 3. User navigates to Settings → Notifications.
4. 4. User enters a mobile phone number in the Phone number field on their profile and saves.
5. 5. User toggles "Enable SMS alerts" on for any alert type.
6. 6. The consent modal appears with the disclosure shown in §3.
7. 7. User reads the disclosure, checks the explicit consent checkbox, and clicks "I agree."
8. 8. The server records sms_consent_at, sms_consent_phone_number, and sms_consent_version (the version of the disclosure text the user agreed to).

Per-alert SMS toggles are individually rejected by the server unless all three consent fields are present and the consent version matches the current disclosure text. Changing the phone number on file invalidates the prior consent and re-prompts the user.

What users see when consenting

Below is the exact consent modal that appears in step 6 of the opt-in workflow, rendered inline in preview mode. The "I agree" button is disabled here because no real opt-in is happening; in the live flow the end user's phone number from their profile replaces the placeholder, and clicking "I agree" records consent on the server.

Phone number shown is a placeholder for preview only. In the live flow the modal interpolates the user's actual phone number from their profile.

Message types you may receive

All IQ Platform SMS alerts are transactional and tied to lots the user is tracking. Each alert type below corresponds 1:1 to a server-side template; the examples shown are paraphrased illustrations of the actual messages sent. One-time sign-in codes are described after the list.

• Outbid alert, sent when the user is no longer the high bidder.
  "IQ Platform: Bid on Antique Brass Lamp now $145 (over your max $120). View: …"
• Bid-below-max reminder, sent when the current bid is still below the user's set maximum.
  "IQ Platform: Antique Brass Lamp at $90, under your max $120. …"
• Lot ending soon, sent shortly before a tracked lot's auction ends.
  "IQ Platform: Antique Brass Lamp ends in 15m at $145. View: …"
• Estimated value changed, sent when our valuation engine re-prices a tracked lot.
  "IQ Platform: Antique Brass Lamp re-valued, UP from $200 to $260. …"
• No-bid-activity reminder, sent when a tracked lot has had no recent bid activity.
  "IQ Platform: Antique Brass Lamp, quiet for 2h at $145. …"
• Daily digest, sent only if the user opts in to a daily summary; one message per day.
  "IQ Platform digest: 4 updates since yesterday. Inbox: …"
• Low-confidence valuation review, sent when our engine flags a tracked lot's valuation as low-confidence and asks the user to review before bidding.
  "IQ Platform: Low-confidence valuation on Antique Brass Lamp ($200). Eyeball before bidding: …"

One-time sign-in codes. A user who turns on text message codes for two-step verification (Settings → Security) gets a one-time code by text, and only when they ask for one: when setting up text message codes, when choosing a texted code while signing in, and when confirming a change to their two-step verification settings. A sign-in code is not an alert and not marketing, and it does not depend on the SMS alert opt-in described in §2 and §3. Codes are sent through Twilio Verify, so they may come from a different number than our alerts, and each code expires after 10 minutes.

Frequency

Alert frequency depends on the lots a user chooses to track and which alert types they enable. Typical range is 0–15 messages per day. Users with no active tracked lots receive no SMS alerts. Users with many tracked lots in active bidding may temporarily see higher volume during the closing minutes of those auctions; outside those windows volume drops back to zero.

Sign-in codes are sent one per request, only when the user asks for a code, and no more than one every 30 seconds or 10 in any 24 hours for an account.

Opt-out and help

STOP and HELP keywords are processed by an inbound webhook on our toll-free number. STOP automatically clears the user's consent record on the server and disables all per-alert SMS toggles. Users can also revoke consent at any time from Settings → Notifications in the app.

To stop one-time sign-in codes, remove the Text message method under Settings → Security. If it is the account's only two-step method, removing it turns two-step verification off. Replying STOP to an alert or revoking SMS consent in Settings does not remove the method.

Carrier and rates

Message and data rates may apply to alerts and to one-time sign-in codes. Carrier charges are the user's responsibility. Delivery is subject to mobile carrier and Twilio availability and is not guaranteed in all situations.

No marketing commitment

IQ Platform does not send marketing or promotional SMS. We do not share or sell phone numbers with third parties for marketing. Phone numbers are used only to deliver the transactional alerts and one-time sign-in codes described in §4 and to honor STOP/HELP replies.

Related policies and contact

See also: Privacy Policy §7 (SMS consent metadata, retention, TCPA) and Terms of Service §8 (TCPA opt-in, STOP/HELP, consent tied to phone number).

Questions about this policy: support@auctioniq.net