In short
- What a report answers: was this message delivered, did it fail, or is it still pending?
- What it does not answer: whether the recipient read the message.
- In Digital Connect: a delivery receipt for each message; platform reports on performance and delivery results; reports you can export; webhook delivery callbacks.
- Most useful for: OTP, transactional alerts and reminders, where a silent failure has consequences.
- Note: looking for delivery reports on your own phone? That is a setting in your phone's messaging app; this page is for organisations that send SMS.
Accepted, delivered, failed: what each stage means
A message passes through several stages between your system and the recipient's phone. Exact status names differ between providers and protocols, so ask your provider for its list.
| Stage | What it means | What your team does |
|---|---|---|
| Accepted (submitted) | The provider received the message for sending. Nothing is known yet about the phone. | Nothing. Do not treat acceptance as delivery. |
| Pending | The message is on its way but has not reached the phone yet. | Wait. For an OTP, let the customer request a new code after a short timeout rather than resending automatically. |
| Delivered | The message reached the recipient's phone. | Close the loop: a customer service agent can confirm the message arrived. |
| Failed | The message was not delivered. A failure usually comes with a reason code. | Check the number and the reason. Remove numbers that keep failing from your lists. |
What a delivery report does not tell you
- Whether the message was read. "Delivered" means the phone received it, not that the customer opened it.
- Whether the content was right. A delivered message with a wrong amount or an expired link is still a problem. Test templates before you send.
- Why the customer did not act. Use your own system's data, such as payments made or codes entered, to measure the result.
Delivery reports in Digital Connect
- A delivery receipt for each message.
- Reports on performance and delivery results in the platform.
- Exportable reports, so your operations, audit or customer service teams can work with the data in their own tools.
- Webhook delivery callbacks: delivery status sent to your own system.
- Integration: you connect over REST, SMPP or SOAP. Ask us how delivery statuses reach your system on the route you choose.
In SMPP, the protocol itself defines how a sender requests a delivery receipt in the submit operation, and the receipt comes back to the sender in a deliver_sm or data_sm operation.
SMPP connection for high-volume SMS
How to use delivery reports by message type
| Message type | Question the report answers | Typical action |
|---|---|---|
| OTP codes | Did the code reach the customer's phone? | Show a "resend code" option after a timeout; investigate when many codes to one country or number range fail |
| Transactional alerts | Did the order, account or appointment alert arrive? | Customer service checks the receipt when a customer says they got nothing |
| Payment and appointment reminders | Was the reminder delivered before the next step? | Confirm delivery before escalating an overdue account or marking a no-show |
| Promotional campaigns | How many messages were delivered, and to which numbers did they fail? | Remove numbers that keep failing before the next campaign |
Common reasons a message is not delivered
Some failures sit with the recipient's phone or network. Others you can fix before you send:
- Number format: store Saudi mobile numbers in one international format, so your system sends to +966 5XXXXXXXX and not a mix of formats.
- Old numbers: numbers change hands or go out of use. Ask customers to confirm their number, and drop numbers that fail repeatedly.
- Promotional settings: under CST's "Regulations for Curbing SPAM Messages & Calls" (version three, October 2022, approved by CST decision 493/1444), operators must let users block or allow promotional messages, and promotional messages start out blocked until the recipient allows them. Promotional sender names carry the "-AD" suffix.
- Sender name: send from a sender name registered for that message type. Interkey registers your sender names with the operators through CST's central bulk-SMS system during onboarding.
- Account settings: country blocking limits your Digital Connect account to the countries you allow, so check the list if you start sending to a new country.
Send SMS under your company name
Questions to ask any provider about delivery reports
- Which status values do your delivery reports show, and what does each one mean?
- Does every message have its own delivery receipt, matched to the message ID my system holds?
- How do statuses reach my system on the integration route I use?
- Which fields can I export from the platform reports, and in which format?
- How long are delivery reports kept, and can I ask for older ones?
Ask us the same questions; we will answer them in writing for your traffic.
Questions about SMS delivery reports
What is an SMS delivery report?
A status for a single message that says whether it was delivered to the recipient's phone, failed, or is still pending. It is also called a delivery receipt or DLR.
Does "delivered" mean the customer read the message?
No. It means the message reached the phone.
Does Digital Connect provide delivery reports?
Yes. Each message has a delivery receipt, visible in the platform reports and available to your systems through webhook callbacks. The reports cover performance and delivery results, and can be exported.
Why does a message stay pending?
The message has not reached the phone yet. For time-sensitive messages such as OTP codes, let the customer request a new code after a timeout instead of resending automatically.
Why do some promotional messages fail when transactional ones arrive?
Promotional messages follow separate rules. Operators must let users block or allow promotional messages, and they start out blocked until the recipient allows them. Check consent and your "-AD" sender name first.
How do I turn on delivery reports on my phone?
That is a setting in your phone's messaging app, not something an SMS provider controls. This page covers delivery reports for organisations that send SMS.
Is Interkey permitted to provide SMS services?
Yes. Interkey holds CST's permit to provide short message services (SMS).