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Send Email to Utah, Go to Jail

Talaria writes "The Institute for Spam and Internet Public Policy is reporting that two new laws in Utah and Michigan are going into effect next week, creating 'do not email' registries for children's email addresses. According to ISIPP, 'Email marketers who send unpermitted messages to email addresses or domains on the child protection registries in Michigan and Utah face stiff penalties including prison and fines.'" (Note that ISIPP has a vested interest in publicizing these laws, since they offer a service intended to establish that senders are in fact within the law.)

39 of 430 comments (clear)

  1. Enforcement Across the Pacific by reporter · · Score: 5, Insightful

    If the spammer is living in China (i.e., mainland China, Taiwan, or Hong Kong) and if this spammer sends e-mail notes to the e-mail address of an American children, how do the authorities plan to enforce this law. There is no extradition treaty between China and the USA.

    1. Re:Enforcement Across the Pacific by LiquidCoooled · · Score: 5, Funny

      Then they will nuke him from orbit.
      Its the only way to be sure.

      --
      liqbase :: faster than paper
    2. Re:Enforcement Across the Pacific by __aaclcg7560 · · Score: 3, Funny

      You send Mormon missionaires overseas to change the culture. Either China changes its email culture or the one-wife, one-child policy goes out the window. Either way, you will have fewer people in Utah writing crazy laws. :P

    3. Re:Enforcement Across the Pacific by FidelCatsro · · Score: 4, Interesting

      Simple answer to that,They can do absolutely nothing.Which is about all they can do for about 99.999% of the spam out their , they may get lucky and catch a few spammers in Michigan , but not even if a country has an extradition treaty with the USA they will not extradite someone for spamming

      --
      The only things certain in war are Propaganda and Death. You can never be sure which is which though
    4. Re:Enforcement Across the Pacific by Drishmung · · Score: 3, Informative

      Mods---the "nuke from orbit" is a joking reference to Aliens. See http://www.moviequotes.com/archive/titles/22.html Modded Troll? Sheesh!

      --
      Protoplasm. Quiet Protoplasm. I like quiet protoplasm.
    5. Re:Enforcement Across the Pacific by EvilStein · · Score: 5, Funny

      " Forget China, what happens if the spammer is in South Dakota?"

      Oh, that's easy. Teey'll just shut off the ISDN line to South Dakota. Problem will be solved in 10 minutes. :)

    6. Re:Enforcement Across the Pacific by DavidTC · · Score: 5, Funny

      No, they've still got the dialup that Frank Jameson's kid set up, over at the library.

      --
      If corporations are people, aren't stockholders guilty of slavery?
    7. Re:Enforcement Across the Pacific by nacturation · · Score: 4, Insightful

      To me atheisim suffers from the same problem religion does, the unexplained.

      There are two versions of the meaning of atheist. One is the technical one, as the word is really a-theist meaning not theist or without theism. So if you are not a theist, you are an atheist. Similar to amoral (not moral), atypical (not typical), asexual (without sexuality), etc.

      The other is the non-technical one which some label themselves and claim "I believe there is no God". Since that involves active belief, it is faith-based (just of an opposite nature) but isn't strictly atheism.

      Since I do not hold the belief that there is one or more gods or goddesses, I am not a theist therefore I classify myself as an atheist.

      --
      Want to improve your Karma? Instead of "Post Anonymously", try the "Post Humously" option.
  2. How do *I* get on the list? by drsmack1 · · Score: 3, Funny

    Sounds like a good way to avoid being SPAMMED...

  3. I dont live in utah by imstanny · · Score: 5, Insightful

    their laws no longer apply to me. ... with time, i won't have to dodge bullets either. But seriously, what their email gets automatically subscribed, as most emails do. Or if you're in a different country or state? I don't know the law in that respect, but it brings up the point of how can Utah law have jurisdiction on the internet.

    1. Re:I dont live in utah by Seumas · · Score: 4, Insightful

      What I want to know is what is so criminal about marketing to children over the internet? We market to them in magazines, on television, in school, on the radio - even in their text books. They can't go a minute without being marketed to in some way. So why should spam be any different?

      And what's next? Arresting some old man in line at the grocery store for making funny faces at the lady's kid in the shopping car - trying to make the kid laugh or something?

      Why don't we just lock children away until they're adults. That way we won't have to worry about them and they will grow up to be perfect, healthy, safe and sane and we won't have to baby-proof everything.

  4. Am I the only one.. by End11 · · Score: 4, Insightful

    .. that doesn't beleive that heavy-handed government intervention is the solution to every problem? Especially when the solution involves censoring (for whatever reason) email communications?

    --

    Which is worse: ignorance or apathy? Who knows? Who cares?
  5. Dear Santa, Re: Your Message by Doc+Ruby · · Score: 5, Insightful

    After a while, when those on the "nospam" list turn into unprotected adults, those addresses become a spammer's dream of verified recipients. Especially to those pitching to the "young adult" market segment, which is probably the most popular for spammers after "midlife crisis men". I guess I know what to give my Utah cousins for their 18th birthdays: A new address.

    --

    --
    make install -not war

  6. oy.... by cryptoz · · Score: 3, Interesting

    This sounds freakishly like the old Do Not Call list. As in, it's a really stupid idea. Why don't we create a list of all the e-mails of people who won't want to be e-mailed? 'Cause, you know, that's smart...no one will ever think of stealing the list and e-mailing all of the people...which would be a great irony, now that I think about it.

    I remember how easy it was to get the DNC list from donotcall.gov for five different area codes, for free (if you lied a couple times about your tax information or something like that).

    What's going to be in place for this to be stopped in this case?

    1. Re:oy.... by Nasarius · · Score: 3, Insightful
      This sounds freakishly like the old Do Not Call list. As in, it's a really stupid idea.

      What are you talking about? The national Do Not Call list works. The whole point is that it's publicly available. What's the problem with that? It's now easy to prosecute violators.

      --
      LOAD "SIG",8,1
    2. Re:oy.... by anthony_dipierro · · Score: 3, Informative

      Well, I have the database. I downloaded it. That's a fact. In order to get permission to download the whole database, I had to claim that I was an exempt organization. According to the website, "Exempt Organizations include charities or non-profit organizations, organizations engaged in political solicitations or surveys, or Sellers or Telemarketers that call ONLY consumers with whom they have an established business relationship or from whom they have obtained the express written agreement to call." Also according to that website, exempt organizations are not required to pay for access to the database.

      I applied as an exempt organization (I'm a Seller who only calls consumers with whom I have an established business relationship), was approved, and downloaded the full national list.

    3. Re:oy.... by Rakishi · · Score: 3, Insightful

      You're a moron, can't find a nicer way to say it. As someone else said the Do Not Call List works, and comparing it to an email list only helps prove that you have no idea what you're talking about. E-mail is mostly untraceable, free and can come from anywhere. Phones are traceable (mostly), cost money and in reality can't come from anywhere due to their cost (phone spamming from China would be amusing). There are also difference of volume and time. Can people get around these things? Yes. Is it through legal means? Probably not. Do they bother? It seems not.

    4. Re:oy.... by caudron · · Score: 4, Informative

      This sounds freakishly like the old Do Not Call list. As in, it's a really stupid idea.

      While I agree with your point in principle (that this list will not be effective), you've used a pretty bad example. I'm on the DNC list, as are many people I know. Once that list kicked in, we all had a period of about a month or so where the calls were tapering off and after that, dead silence. That thing works like a champ! I still got calls, but only from groups that are legally exempt from the list, which is a WAY smaller group than before. I went from 2 to 4 solicitor calls a day to about 1 every two weeks, if that. The others that I know have had similar experiences.

      --
      -Tom
  7. sigh... by rbochan · · Score: 3, Insightful

    Yet another WON'T SOMEONE THINK OF THE CHILDREN!!!11!!oneone!!OMGWTFBBQ!!!!! pseudo-law...

    George Carlin was right about the Pussification of America(TM).

    --
    ...Rob
    The American Dream isn't an SUV and a house in the suburbs; it's Don't Tread On Me.
  8. Token Law by Saeed+al-Sahaf · · Score: 4, Insightful

    As usual, the headline is misleading. There is little chance that Utah will attempt to extradite spammers from China / Russia / South America, and so on. While a few (yes, and really VERY FEW) local boys have been hooked by The Feds, most are too slick (slimy?) to fall for leaving readable tracks for law enforcement to follow. In summary, this law is token and nothing more.

    --
    "Who are in control, they are not in control of anything - they don't even control themselves!" - Glen Beck
  9. More feel-good legislation by suitepotato · · Score: 5, Insightful

    Utah isn't going to be getting extradition for arrests of spammers in other states. Flat out not going to get it. The other jurisdictions don't even care to enforce their own junk fax laws, never mind anti-spam laws. Now Utah has an idea that they'll get other states to go along?

    No, not really. But the public will think they are doing something and go back to watching Survivor or whatever until their next wave of "government must do X about Y" feelings comes over them.

    --
    If my grammar and spelling are off, I am [distracted/tired/careless] (take your pick)
  10. What is Utah really like? by CyricZ · · Score: 3, Interesting

    I have to ask what Utah is really like. I'm from Britain, so I've never been there. But all I hear about is that they're a very backwards state, in basically every way possible. I've even heard some people go so far as to say that Utah is resonsible for a lot of the decay in the United States today. Are those claims true, or are they just overgeneralizations based on the actions of a select few individuals?

    --
    Cyric Zndovzny at your service.
    1. Re:What is Utah really like? by symbolic · · Score: 5, Funny

      I've even heard some people go so far as to say that Utah is resonsible for a lot of the decay in the United States today.

      I think that's Washington D.C. you're referring to.

    2. Re:What is Utah really like? by drsmack1 · · Score: 5, Funny

      Utah is a prosperous state with a highly educated and industrious populous. Anything bad that you are hearing is generated by Left-Wingers who are threatened by the Right-wing slant of the state.

      Basically they have all the good and bad of every state in the union; in varying degrees. They have a lot of rural areas which drag then down a bit in the statistics.

      http://www.adherents.com/largecom/lds_dem.html

      http://www.netstate.com/states/alma/ut_alma.htm

    3. Re:What is Utah really like? by Deagol · · Score: 3, Interesting
      However, truth be told, Utah just doesn't have that much influence. It's only a few major cities (or perhaps just one - Salt Lake City), and most of the region is desert and salt flats. There just isn't all that much there to influence the rest of the country.

      Two points:

      1. The LDS Church, being a fairly good-sized, fast-growing non-profit organization whose members diligently ante up 10% of their income, has some politial clout. They lobbied heavily in Hawaii and Alaska (maybe wrong on this state) to defeat state bills that would sanction gay marriages (several years ago). I *think* the bills were defeated, but I can't say for sure.

      2. Orrin Hatch. He's Mormon and he's got some clout in Congress. (This scares the hell out of me, to be honest.)

      I (an atheist) live in central Utah and I kept tabs on what the locals were on about during this last election. While LDS friends tell me that the Church has an actual policy against peddling its political preferences at the pulpit, I'm almost certain that it happens all the time. If not during normal "service" (whatever they call it), very likely during the various other activities the church members engage in. The LDS implementation is of a "distributed" nature. No real offical clergy, per se, other than the standing profit -- err, I mean prophet -- and the Quorum of Twelve (or somesuch). Average joes are selected to act as "bishop" of local stakes/wards and lower members serve various functions, too. Given that, it's almost a guarantee that these people push/reinforce their political view amongst each other.

      It's no wonder this state was the reddest on the map in 2004. I swear, The Stepford Wives story must have been about Provo, but some influencial Mormon put pressure on the author. :)

    4. Re:What is Utah really like? by Guppy06 · · Score: 5, Insightful

      Disclaimer: I'm 2 time zones away from Utah and the closest I've been to it is 6 miles over it.

      At any rate, I wouldn't say Utah is "dragging down the nation" all that much, if at all. You can't really talk about Utah without talking about Mormons, but my experience is that, while they may be quirky and even a little annoying at times, they're nowhere near as vitriolic as Evangelicals in general and Baptists in particular.

      Part of it has to do with history, I think: other than sending out missionaries on bicycles, Mormons have learned the hard way to keep to themselves. Baptists may be up in arms about a government conspiracy out to get them when they can't put the Ten Commandments in a courthouse, but I haven't seen the US Army shoot at them yet. They also haven't been forced to alter their religious teachings in order to be considered for statehood.

      (I'm partly sympathetic, but I'm mostly just ashamed of my government w/r/t Mormons.)

      Even on television they seem far more sedate in pushing their religion than your average group of Baptists. They don't start out with threats of damnation, they just want to start by mailing you a book.

      Another poster mentioned Senator Hatch, but let's face it: it takes 51 senators to get a bad bill through, and Hatch is only one man. You can't blame all those bad votes on Utah or Mormons. However, Baptists have the entire Bible Belt to play with (with the help of some sympathetic Catholics in Louisiana).

      At any rate, if you're looking for someone to blame, I'd look elsewhere for now. Another poster mentioned Washington, D. C.

  11. I do not see how this could possibly work by Approaching.sanity · · Score: 3, Interesting

    Will this apply to e-mail addresses Created in Utah? Stored? If I am a resident of that state, create an e-mail address for that list and move to a different state can I use their law against someone else?

    It will be impossible to enforce.

    --
    RTFA again for the best results.
  12. Re:Slashdot's American Flag Icon by TrappedByMyself · · Score: 4, Funny

    Why are there only 12 stripes in it? The flag has 13. Slashdot needs to fix this. It's very disrespectful to the flag and the people who died for it.

    Nah, it's just a tribute to the wealth of accurate information available on Slashdot.

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    Help me take back Slashdot. When did 'News for Nerds' become 'FUD and Conspiracy Theories for Extremist Nutjobs'?
  13. Correction (was:Enforcement Across the Pacific) by Lead+Butthead · · Score: 4, Informative

    Taiwan is NOT a part of People's Republic of China , despite of what PRoC government propaganda wants the rest of the planet to believe. Please make a note of it in the future.

    But indeed, there still isn't a way to enforce any anti-spam law(s) across varies national borders. Frankly, considering that the existing laws could not even be enforced in the spamhole known as state of Florida (that is a part of the United States,) what chance is there that they're enforced anywhere else outside of United States?

    --
    ELOI, ELOI, LAMA SABACHTHANI!?
  14. Re:Slashdot's American Flag Icon by alphorn · · Score: 3, Insightful

    It's very disrespectful to the flag and the people who died for it.

    <ot>
    Lots of people died for the Nazi flag, too, so should it be held in respect as well? I say we should stand up for values, not for countries and their symbols.
    </ot>

    "Patriotism is the virtue of the vicious." --Oscar Wilde

  15. You insensitive clod... by Saeed+al-Sahaf · · Score: 4, Funny
    I picture you to be a skinny pale dude with bad teeth eating boiled meat and drinking a warm Guiness...

    You insensitive clod...

    --
    "Who are in control, they are not in control of anything - they don't even control themselves!" - Glen Beck
  16. hello frend by fermion · · Score: 5, Funny
    Hello young UtaH child

    My name is Prince omar en caver ensanado and i am in desperate need of help. My heard of unicorns are kiled by very bad men who have taken over my country of narnia. We need helps to buy food and supplies to keep alive the unicorns.

    I know that you are a good child, and will be willing to help. I am also able to pay great money for the help. If you can email your momy or dadys bank account and social secutrity number, I put lots of money in the account. They be very happy and thank you for long time for making them so much money. In return we just need to spend some of it on food and some fun army stuff.

    If you me help reply please. The poor little unicorns are dying. To deposit the money in you parents account and make them very happy, I need you to buy some stuff and leave in wardrobe at place I tell you later. you can buy with credit cards. We give you gillions of dollars as soon as we get the stuff.

    Please help! You want to make parent happy and be good child, yes. you don't want to be bad child? Pleas reply and I tell you what you must buy. All this ok, i promise, cross my hert!

    --
    "She's a scientist and a lesbian. She's not going to let it slide." Orphan Black
  17. It's a bit more complicated then that. by autopr0n · · Score: 4, Insightful

    China's government has no direct control over what happens on the Island, but the KMT party which founded the Taiwan we know today is pro-unification, their ultimate goal is to merge with the PRC on their own terms. They used to claim to run the entire country, and sat on the UN, and even the UN security Counsole as "china". On the other hand, the other major party is seperatist, and wants to start a new country, called Taiwan.

    Right now a lot of Taiwanese bussness men are taking advantage of the fact that they are "Chinese" in order to make money in the quickly growing chinese economy. Lots of Taiwanese companies have plants and whatnot in China.

    --
    autopr0n is like, down and stuff.
  18. Child predators by Carrion · · Score: 4, Insightful

    With all the hissy fit that's been going on about the possibilities for rapists to find children to abuse online, is it really a good idea to make it public information how to get a hold of children directly?

  19. Pedophiles everywhere rejoice, plan trips to Utah by Tassach · · Score: 3, Insightful
    A list of email addresses known to be read by real children? That sounds like a pedophile's wet dream.

    This list is custom-made for abuse, especially when you consider that many people use the same nickname in multiple places -- email, instant messanger, blogs, etc.

    --
    Why is it that the proponents of "one nation under God" are so eager to get rid of "liberty and justice for all"?
  20. States use unenforcable laws to complain by Frobnicator · · Score: 3, Insightful
    This is just one of many "we don't like how the world works" bills and laws. The state *knows* it won't be enforcable, they just want to make their voice heard.

    There are lots of these bills. Too many /.ers saw the word "Utah" and instantly ignored the fact that Michigan introduced it too, or even ignored the rest of the post.

    frob

    --
    //TODO: Think of witty sig statement
  21. Just like any other place... by ChePibe · · Score: 5, Informative

    If you're not a big fan of trees and moisture in general, you may like it.

    Yes, I'm a Mormon, but I'm originally from the south (North Florida... basically an extension of Georgia with an Alabama twang) and I'd never been to Utah at all until I was 19, and not for any appreciable amount of time until I was 21 and was going to college. I have no blood relatives from Utah.

    Here's what I can't stand about Utah - climate. Hate it. I'm from Florida and I like my oxygen soaking and mosquito infested thank you very much. I'm tired of going through a tube of Chapstick every four days and I hate having to put lotion on my hands every day or watch them crack and bleed. My wife wants to stay in Salt Lake for my career... and her skin breaks out around humidity... don't know how we're going to arrange this one.

    Some portions of culture - as noted, yes, I'm a Mormon, but I'd never been to Utah before I grew up. Some portions of the population are amazingly zealous (a small town or two in Utah actually has declared itself a "UN free zone", whatever that may mean), but so long as you stay out of the geographical fringes and don't go attacking people for whatever reason, you're pretty much OK. There's a lot more anti-Mormon activity here than there was in the South (and that's saying something), which I'm not a big fan of. I've never stood outside of someone else's building to pamphlet it, blare at those who enter it with megaphones, or break up other people's wedding parties, but there's a lot of folks there that seem to like to do it to the Mormons.

    As far as the state being the "reddest" in the nation, that's true, but take a look at the political affiliation of the mayor of Utah's biggest city - yup, Salt Lake's mayor is a Democrat.

    Take a look at the Senate minority leader, Harry Reid. He's a Mormon, too. It would appear the democrats don't have that much of a problem with Mormons after all.

    Also, should it really surprise people that a bunch of conservative minded people should vote for a (here's a shocker) conservative party? Or that people should vote for others in their peer groups? Sure, lots of Mormons get elected but guess what - the majority of the people in Utah are MORMONS. You could even look at it as a matter of probability - if you were to randomly select something from a bag and 75% of the objects in the bag were one color, which would you be most likely to select? Apply the dynamics of winner-take-all voting on there and you're bound to get more Mormons in government. You may also note that blacks are very often elected by majority black areas and Jews in majority Jewish areas. Is it really that surprising that a place with a population up to 90% Mormon in some areas would vote for a Mormon and would allow their religious beliefs to maybe come into their voting?

    As far as Utah bringing down American society as we know it, I hardly think Utah's four or five electoral votes could have that effect. And the people you're largely thinking of are evangelicals - and many of those are out there burning Books of Mormon and causing the Mormons a lot of trouble.

    Paranoid political theories aside, Mormons don't (or most certainly don't) discuss politics from the pulpit. No non-profit group can without risking its non-profit status. Ironically, this has been used against a lot of Anti-Mormon groups that attack Mormon candidates based on religion.

    I'm actually a BYU student in Provo, the most Republican city in the most Republican state in the Union. BYU does have a large Democrats club that actually WON last year's debate against the Republican club (whooped 'em big time), and the debate was scored by a firm, straight party-line Republican professor (I know because I've talked with him about these issues privately from time to time).

    However, it shouldn't be assumed that all of the professors share his views. Of the professors I know who have expressed political views, Democrats are at least even with Republicans, and there's even

  22. Utah is great in some ways, not so great in others by John+Harrison · · Score: 4, Insightful
    If you like snow skiing, hiking, mountain biking, camping, fishing, rock climbing, or any number of other outdoor activities, Utah is a great place to live. Not only does it have real seasons (snow in the winter, sun in the summer) but there is a real diversity of terrain. You can go from desert to glaciers pretty quickly in some places.

    If you really, really, really hate Mormons (and I'd love to know why if you do, please say "intolerance on their part" so I can laugh at your intolerance), and you like to complain about obnoxious liquor laws, then it might not be the right place for you. The liquor lawas seem to be more of a problem for the tourists than for the locals, since the real problem is just understanding them. Anybody that wants to drink in Utah drinks whatever they want to.

    Even if you have no desire to live there, it is really worth a visit while on holiday. There are a large number of national parks and some really spectacular scenery.

  23. Re:Um, no by The+boojum · · Score: 4, Interesting

    I'm a "gentile" who moved here to Salt Lake City at the beginning of the year to go back to grad school and this is pretty much how it's looked to me so far. About the only thing I have to add is that I've been told that many people aren't quite as wealthy as they seem at first glance here. The LDS tendency to mary young often leads to people overextending their credit trying to purchase a house too early.

    And yeah, I have yet to really meet annoying pushy LDS folks like I have evangelicals. Polite protest of disinterest have worked just fine.

    There also turn out to be some surprising advantages to the oddities in legislation here. For example, the recent SCOTUS Eminent Domain ruling has no effect here as the state government recently passed legislation banning eminent domain for redevelopment purposes (except, in a twisted joke, for the redevelopers own property.)

    I should mention, however, that my views are somewhat coloured by a fairly centrists view of American politics and religion, so the politics and religion here don't really bother me as much as they might some. (Honestly, for the moment I find them a somewhat refreshing change from my old heavily blue state.)