SMS via AWS SNS not delivered to Orange Caraïbe (Guadeloupe) users – “phone has blocked SMS” error

Question

Hello,

We are using AWS SNS to send transactional SMS messages to our customers. Delivery works fine for most destinations, but users located in Guadeloupe (French overseas territory – carrier: Orange Caraïbe) are not receiving the messages.

In the SNS delivery logs, we consistently see this error under delivery.providerResponse: phone has blocked SMS

Here are the key points of our setup:
	•	Message type is set to Transactional in the SNS text messaging preferences.
	•	We are using a custom alphanumeric Sender ID configured in SNS.
	•	Phone numbers are formatted in E.164 format (e.g., +590...).
	•	SMS delivery works as expected for other destinations (including mainland France).

Has anyone faced issues delivering SMS via AWS SNS to Orange Caraïbe (Guadeloupe)? “phone has blocked SMS” error

SburvT · Answer

This issue is something I've seen come up occasionally with AWS SNS when sending transactional SMS with custom alphanumeric sender IDs. Some carriers in overseas territories have stricter filtering or restrictions on sender IDs or message types.

Verify with Orange Caraïbe if they have specific restrictions or blocking rules for alphanumeric sender IDs or transactional SMS from AWS SNS. Sometimes, the carrier needs to whitelist your sender ID or approve your messaging traffic. As a test, try sending SMS with a numeric sender ID (a regular phone number) instead of alphanumeric to see if messages go through. This often helps diagnose if the problem is related to sender ID blocking.

Check if the AWS SNS SMS origination number or the configuration matches regional requirements or regulations for Guadeloupe. Carriers may enforce regional compliance strictly for overseas territories

SMS via AWS SNS not delivered to Orange Caraïbe (Guadeloupe) users – “phone has blocked SMS” error

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