Regulators are struggling to control an influx of spam messages plaguing mobile users in Bahrain.

Most come from abroad making it difficult to penalise those responsible, said Telecommunications Regulatory Authority (TRA) communications manager Abdulelah Abdullah.

"Most of these commercial messages have their sources outside of Bahrain, so it is difficult to obtain statistics and pinpoint the exact spam source," he told the GDN.

The regulator focuses, instead, on scrupulous awarding of licences to companies to prevent future spam messages.

"Some people like to be updated about certain ongoing offers so it's not easy to manage commercial bulk messages," he said.

Bahrain Consumer Protection Society chairman Majed Sharaf said that prevention of unwanted messages has been one of its target areas.

"We found that it was difficult to trace calls and messages because they come from abroad," he told the GDN.

He said that some companies sold databases containing personal information, making most subscribers vulnerable to such intrusions of privacy.

"We've approached a few telecom companies in Bahrain to stop these messages," he said.

While acknowledging the right of companies to advertise, Mr Sharaf also urged greater regulation to control unmitigated commercial bulk messaging.

"Some companies plague users at very late hours," he said.

"We have approached the TRA to regulate the timings of these messages but it really proves difficult to manage."

The TRA reminded consumers that they can stop receiving unwanted commercial messages by contacting their service providers.

Licensed operators are obliged to provide a mechanism to block such messages, according to the TRA's bulk commercial messages regulation, which was issued last year.

"TRA has mandated this service on mobile licensed operators to promote consumer privacy," said TRA consumer affairs and media director Ghada Al Qassab.

"Unlike social media messages, commercial bulk messages are pushed to consumers at any time and in many cases without their consent which required the TRA to intervene and regulate this commercial activity with a proper legal and technical regulation.

"Some consumers see promotional messages as a breach of their privacy while some consider them as a source of information.

"TRA balances these needs and concerns by introducing some safeguards to provide consumers with the choice of receiving or blocking such messages."

Consumers can submit their complaints and enquiries to the TRA through a customer relationships management system which is available through their website www.tra.com.bh.

The regulator will also receive complaints and queries regarding services and operators through its free consumer line 81188.