Definition of SPAM
This message is brought to you by a reformed bulk emailer.
The CAN-SPAM Act, a U.S. law that sets the rules for commercial email, establishes requirements for commercial messages, gives recipients the right to have you stop emailing them, and spells out tough penalties for violations.
The law does NOT prohibit the sending of unsolicited commercial email. That is why critics of the law call it the YOU CAN SPAM Act.
The law covers all commercial messages, which the law defines as “any electronic mail message the primary purpose of which is the commercial advertisement or promotion of a commercial product or service,” including email that promotes content on commercial websites. The law makes no exception for business-to-business email. That means all email – for example, a message to former customers announcing a new product line – must comply with the law.
The law covers three types of email depending on the primary nature of the content or purpose of the email:
Commercial content – which advertises or promotes a commercial product or service, including content on a website operated for a commercial purpose;
Transactional or relationship content – which facilitates an already agreed-upon transaction or updates a customer about an ongoing transaction; and
Other content – which is neither commercial nor transactional or relationship.
Email with commercial content has the most stringent requirements under the law. UCE just has to meet the law requirements such as:
1. have an unsubscribe link to opt out of future messages
2. provide a physical address
3. do not use false or misleading headers
4. do not use deceptive subject lines
5. identify the message as an advertisement
Transactional or relationship type content messages only have to comply with the requirement not to use false or misleading headers.
Messages with other content do not fall within the requirements of the CAN-SPAM Act.
You are free to send all the tacky, political or religious email you want. Non-commercial messages have stronger First Amendment protections than commercial messages.
Recent Comments
14
Thanks Glen. Useful summary.
Fellow WA members, note that all major email service providers have features incorporated to separate "spam" so that recipients can choose to address spam at their own pace. Our mobile handsets too have features to "BLOCK" or "BLACK LIST" telephone numbers fro which "spam" text or multimedia messages originate.
Hi Glen,Seems to be a lot of posting about spam....
However I do agree with you, it is a little difficult to socialize with others without sharing a part of what makes you ...well you...lol
Post on, thanks for the post.
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This is very good information Glen. Now we need to know how to get rid of scammers!