The CAN-SPAM Act of 2003
Effective on January 1, 2004, the real name of this piece of legislation is “The Controlling the Assault of Non-Solicited Pornography and Marketing Act.” One of ten bills aimed at regulating spam in the 108th Congress (2003), the CAN-SPAM Act took much less drastic steps than the other proposed legislation. Its key provisions include:
- E-Mail Advertising is Permitted
- Applies to Commercial E-Mail Messages
- Recipients Must be Allowed to Opt Out
- Must Not be Sent to Recipients Requesting Not to Receive Them
- Most Prohibitions Don’t Apply to Transactional or Relationship E-Mails
- Can Not Mask Origin of Messages
- Must be Identified as Ads
- Most State Anti-Spam Laws are Preempted
- Recipients Can’t Sue Spammers
- ISPs Can Sue Spammers
Among the strongest supporters of this law are the Direct Marketing Association (DMA), the US Chamber of Commerce, and large ISPs. Among its opponents are most anti-spam organizations in the country, most consumer groups, and a number of anti-spam companies. Understanding the divide between those supporting and opposing the law is simple: the law favors the marketing industry to the detriment of consumers.
Learn More
In the Spring of 2005, an analysis of the CAN-SPAM Act was done for UVSC's LEGL3020 Cyberlaw class. Below are links to the report and other information.
