Slashdot Mirror
Stronger Anti-Spam Law Proposed
NumberField writes "The fight against Spam is making for some strange bedfellows. A new bill sponsored by Senator
Charles Schumer (D-NY)
and the right-wing Christian Coalition
that would let individuals sue spammers for $1000 per message. What isn't clear is how they will define spam broadly enough to outlaw it, but narrowly enough to avoid making it a bonanza for lawyers. For more information, see Schumer's
fact sheet (PDF), or his
press release." Update: 06/13 14:20 GMT by M : The draft bill (pdf) is available.
You can propose all the anti-spam laws you want. But if you keep it restricted to one country, you won't go very far. Spammers will use other locations to send their spam from. So it only works if you have an international law.
That's all very well, but for a large chunk of spam, identifying the spammer if difficult, and to it in a way that would hold up in court would be even harder..
I lay awake last night wondering where the sun had gone, then it dawned on me.
If the law is drafted in a manner which allows authorities to go after the people benefiting from spam, rather than just the people actually sending it, then they could make substantial progress. Most of the spam I receive is for US-based companies, even if it was actually sent from China.
Tarsnap: Online backups for the truly paranoid
do we need to prove that those emails suspected of spamming are truly unsolicited? how do we prove that we never subscribed to a certain mailing list? can spammer 'fake' subscriptions?
and with the "Do Not Spam" registry of e-mail addresses, wouldn't it make it easier for spammers to request such do-not-spam list and spam it??
If you outlaw guns, only outlaws will have guns. like the article stated, it might endanger legitimate Internet services.
I don't see the point in having a 'do not spam' list for the US, when the majority of spam the rest of us are receiving on this planet comes from the US. Is the US govt seriously going to compile a list for all 6 billion of us?
This proposal still makes it a civil matter for the recipient, having to sue the spammer for damages. What's needed is a federal US law making mass junk emailing a criminal offense. Instead they are just pushing it back onto the people to fight in civil courts. The only winners here are the spammers and lawyers.
I like the sound of this. Defining Spam would be a problem.
If you could prove that there is either no way of requesting an end to the spam or that it didn't work when you clicked on the link then that might stand up in court.
If you still get spam then you should be able to forward it onto some Government organisation who would deal with the company with an army of beurachrats.
Here in the UK, we have a good system for stopping unsolicited phone calls and text (SMS) messages. It is called TPS (Telephone Preference Service). You basically register your number(s) with this organisation and marketeers aren't allowed to use that number. If they do you can report it, they can check phone records or something and fine them something like £5,000. This system does work.
To: happy@public.com
From: david@ironico.com
Subj: Spammed? You MAY be intitled to compensation!
Dear Potential Customer,
Have you been spammed lately by some legimate business owner offering you endless underage pornography, ways to enlarge your small penis and those plans that can make you a millionare overnight?
If so then call us now! Ironico: Spam Attourneys at Large promises YOU a BIG CASH SETTLEMENT for every spam mail you've receieved. Act now to get this free jar opener!
Thank you for your attention
David Mirkoff
Ironico: Spam Attourneys at Large