UK anti spam law takes effect today
The new anti-spam laws came into effect today
(December 11), but don't hold your breath!
Today (Wednesday, December 11), the UK implemented
the European directive on unsolicited commercial mail (or "spam"). From today it
is illegal for UK companies to send unsolicited commercial e-mail to a personal
e-mail address.
The best advice I have got is that john@company.co.uk would be a personal e-mail, but sales@company.co.uk would not. (So UK companies would be legally in the clear to continue spamming the second one.)
Penalties for breaches are up to £5,000 per instance so the new law does appear to have teeth. However it would be naive to consider there is going to be much of an effect on our in-boxes.
For a start, companies can continue to send e-mails to existing customers. However, it must be e-mail about products or services similar to those we have an existing relationship about. So a book club shouldn't suddenly start sending you e-mails about electrical goods.
In future, a customer relationship with a UK company will not permit them to add you to an e-mail list. You should be asked for your permission and - a small but important point - this should be by "opting in" not "opting out". (For example, you should have to tick a box to accept e-mails not to un-tick an easily-overlooked box to say you don't want them!)
So, why is this not likely to make much difference to your volume of spam?
1. Although all EU countries have, or will be, implementing the directive in their own countries as we just have, much of our spam comes from outwith the EU and is therefore outside this law.
2. Much of the spam we get is from false e-mail addresses, especially the seedier adverts for Viagra and offers to increase the size of parts of your anatomy. (Apple Macs give you the facility to bounce e-mail you don't want as "undeliverable"... much of it bounces back again because the address given does not exist!)
3. There will always be people who will simply take a chance.
At the moment it is reckoned that between 50% and 60% of all e-mail is spam. So it will take more than this law to stop it.
The serial spammers are dealing in millions of e-mail addresses. Indeed, I recently recieved a spam e-mail offering me the chance to reach 28 MILLION people for $128. Although the vast majority will be treated as a nuisance and deleted, it would only take a very small proportion of success on that number to make the whole exercise commercially viable.
So, what should you do about spam?
1. Get a filter or set up your existing filters.
2. Avoid having your main e-mail address on websites or on busy bulletin boards.
3. Unless you are sure of the credibility of the company, never click the "unsubscribe" or "remove" button on the offending e-mail. If anything it will just make the spammers redouble their efforts because they know they have a live e-mail.
Details of how to complain about unsolicited commercial e-mails or unsolicited mobile phone texts are on the website of the Information Commissioner's Office www.informationcommissioner.gov.uk
The best advice I have got is that john@company.co.uk would be a personal e-mail, but sales@company.co.uk would not. (So UK companies would be legally in the clear to continue spamming the second one.)
Penalties for breaches are up to £5,000 per instance so the new law does appear to have teeth. However it would be naive to consider there is going to be much of an effect on our in-boxes.
For a start, companies can continue to send e-mails to existing customers. However, it must be e-mail about products or services similar to those we have an existing relationship about. So a book club shouldn't suddenly start sending you e-mails about electrical goods.
In future, a customer relationship with a UK company will not permit them to add you to an e-mail list. You should be asked for your permission and - a small but important point - this should be by "opting in" not "opting out". (For example, you should have to tick a box to accept e-mails not to un-tick an easily-overlooked box to say you don't want them!)
So, why is this not likely to make much difference to your volume of spam?
1. Although all EU countries have, or will be, implementing the directive in their own countries as we just have, much of our spam comes from outwith the EU and is therefore outside this law.
2. Much of the spam we get is from false e-mail addresses, especially the seedier adverts for Viagra and offers to increase the size of parts of your anatomy. (Apple Macs give you the facility to bounce e-mail you don't want as "undeliverable"... much of it bounces back again because the address given does not exist!)
3. There will always be people who will simply take a chance.
At the moment it is reckoned that between 50% and 60% of all e-mail is spam. So it will take more than this law to stop it.
The serial spammers are dealing in millions of e-mail addresses. Indeed, I recently recieved a spam e-mail offering me the chance to reach 28 MILLION people for $128. Although the vast majority will be treated as a nuisance and deleted, it would only take a very small proportion of success on that number to make the whole exercise commercially viable.
So, what should you do about spam?
1. Get a filter or set up your existing filters.
2. Avoid having your main e-mail address on websites or on busy bulletin boards.
3. Unless you are sure of the credibility of the company, never click the "unsubscribe" or "remove" button on the offending e-mail. If anything it will just make the spammers redouble their efforts because they know they have a live e-mail.
Details of how to complain about unsolicited commercial e-mails or unsolicited mobile phone texts are on the website of the Information Commissioner's Office www.informationcommissioner.gov.uk
Posted: Thu - December 11, 2003 at 04:45 PM
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