SINGAPORE — A tuition agency and its director yesterday became the first to be charged with flouting the Do Not Call (DNC) Registry requirements under the Personal Data Protection Act.

The court action against Star Zest Home Tuition and its 35-year-old director, Law Han Wei, came following complaints from the public. Law and the agency each face 37 charges.

Between Jan 3 and Jan 14, Star Zest allegedly sent unsolicited telemarketing messages to mobile phone subscribers on 37 occasions without first applying to the Personal Data Protection Commission (PDPC) to confirm whether the numbers were listed in the DNC Registry.

Law, who allegedly authorised the sending of the messages, said he intends to plead guilty to the charges.

If convicted, he faces a fine of up to S$10,000 per charge. The case will next be mentioned on July 2.

Star Zest, which was founded in 1999, provides middleman services, matching private tutors to students from Kindergarten One to university levels. Its alleged breach of the DNC Registry rules came shortly after the registry came into effect on Jan 2.

Telemarketers must check against the registry before making a sales pitch. The registry was set up to allow consumers to block unsolicited marketing calls, SMS messages and faxes by listing their numbers on it.

The PDPC said since Jan 2, it has investigated 3,700 valid complaints from the public against 630 organisations from sectors such as property, tuition and insurance.

It said complaints relating to suspected unlicensed moneylending activities have been referred to the police.