A method for enhancing the privacy of recipients of personalizing text messages such as advertisements delivered to communication terminals such as cellular telephones. A common carrier such as a cellular telephone service provider gathers personal information from a subscriber at the time the subscriber signs on for service and receives a communication terminal. The carrier loads the terminal with a table that assigns variables to elements of personal information. The carrier accepts messages such as advertisements for distribution to subscribers. These messages use the variables that the carrier has loaded into the subscribers' terminals. When such a message is received, a subscriber's terminal replaces the variables with the elements of personal information by referring to the table.