My money says that there is about a 50% chance that you are a spammer and don’t know it. Why do I think so? It is my observation, that although the CAN-SPAM Act of 2003 is old news, half of the commercial e-mail marketers either ignore the law or simply don’t understand it.
I monitored my incoming e-mails for the last seven days and guess what I found? About 50% of the e-mails that I received were not in compliance. Most of these e-mails came from the sources that I had opted-in. By the way, these were mostly legitimate firms that sent e-mails that did not get caught by my spam filter.
The CAN-SPAM Act of 2003 very specifically identifies the following:
• Bans false or misleading “from” lines
• Prohibits deceptive subject lines
• Requires an opt-out method
• Requires that e-mail be identified as an advertisement
• Requires the sender’s valid physical postal address.
Further, each violation is subject to fines of up to $11,000! That is huge! While it is true that prosecution has been modest to date, it is increasing. The courts are getting progressively tougher while consumers and businesses have grown weary of the constant bombardment by spammers—opt-in or not.
The law is quite specific, yet companies are largely ignoring it. Why? Ignorance of the law is a factor, but the lack of enforcement is the root cause.
My recommendation is to obey the way today and avoid the wrath of the court system. There may be reckoning and it won’t be pretty.
John Bradley Jackson
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