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Most Comprehensive Anti Spam Plan In The Country Targets Computer and Cellular Phone Spam, Pop-Up Ads & Domain Name Theft
Tuesday, May 20, 2003
Senate Majority Leader Joseph L. Bruno and members of the Senate Majority Conference today unveiled the most comprehensive package of legislation in the country to fight unwanted computer e-mails known as "Spam."
The legislation targeting Spam builds on the efforts of the Senate Task Force on Privacy Invasion. Created by Senator Bruno in 1999, the Task Force made several recommendations that became law, including establishment of the successful Do Not Call registry to prevent unwanted telemarketing calls. The registry has become the model for the rest of the nation.
SPAM STATS:
> Researchers estimated the number of spam messages sent every day at nine billion, more than 40 percent of all e-mail;
> This year, more than 2 trillion pieces of spam e-mail are expected to choke Internet mail boxes, more than 100 times the amount of mail delivered by the United States Postal Service last year;
> It costs businesses an estimated $9 billion a year in lost productivity for time spent deleting spam emails and adds about two dollars a month to an individual�s Internet bill;
> Two-thirds of spam e-mails are false or deceptive.
The Senate�s legislative package includes provisions that would: Ban deceptive spam that evades spam filters; Enable people to unsubscribe from spam e-mail lists and place their name on a Do Not Spam registry; Allow people to disable web site �pop-up� ads; Ban spam sent to cellular phones; Require the flagging of spam emails with sexual content; Fight the cyber-squatting of web site domain names; and provide for the enforcement of web site privacy policies.
"This is the most comprehensive package of anti-spam legislation that has been introduced in any state in the nation," Senator Bruno said. "Communications technology is advancing rapidly,
so is ability of advertisers to annoy people with unwanted ads in inboxes, cell phones and pop-ups on web sites. It seems like there is simply no end. The legislation the Senate will act on next week tells spammers that enough is enough and gives computer users the tools to fight back and stop spam."
"The spam problem is becoming much more than a nuisance," Senator Bruno said. "It�s hurting businesses productivity, costing our economy billions of dollars, it�s slowing down Internet service and threatening the very future of e-mail communication. The spam problem exceeds the problems of junk faxes and junk phone calls. We�ve tackled those problems, now we must address the spam problem by enacting the Senate�s legislation. "
Earlier this month, a U.S District Court Judge ordered Howard Carmack of Buffalo to pay $16.4 million in penalties to Internet service provider Earthlink, for sending more than 825 million unwanted spam emails since March 2002. Carmack was also charged with four felonies and two misdemeanors for allegedly using false identities and stolen credit card and bank account information to create hundreds of e-mail accounts to send spam emails.
In April, America Online, Yahoo and Microsoft, the three largest providers of e-mail accounts, announced they would join forces to develop ways to stop spam.
The legislation that will be acted on by the Senate next week includes the following:
THE ANTI-SPAM ACT OF 2003 (S.5155, Sen. Robach)
The Anti-Spam Act of 2003, sponsored by Senator Joseph Robach (R, Rochester), is a comprehensive bill that will enable people to combat spam by getting removed from e-mail lists, prevent spam over cellular phones and get rid of pop-up ads and pornographic emails.
"Spam has become an enormous problem for businesses and consumers, beyond being an incredible annoyance, it costs people time and money," Senator Robach said. "Spammers are doing their best to keep ahead of spam-fighting technology, so we have to address the problem head on by giving power to computer users to fight back. My legislation would help people stop the junk e-mail that is filling up their e-mail inboxes every day."
The Anti-Spam Act of 2003 includes the following:
-- UNSUBSCRIBE FROM SPAM LISTS
The bill requires that commercial emails contain a line that enables the computer user to unsubscribe from the spam senders e-mail list. This would make it significantly easier for people to stop follow up spam and reduce the amount of spam crowding their inbox.
Colorado, Iowa, Kansas, Minnesota, Missouri, Ohio, Rhode Island and Utah have enacted similar legislation.
-- POP UP ADS
Websites which host pop up ads (adds which open a separate window on your computer) must contain a process to disable the pop up ads on that site. If enacted, New York would be the first state in the country to address the issue of web site pop up ads.
-- CELLULAR SPAM
The bill would prohibit spam sent to cell phones that have text messaging and wireless devices. More and more phones accept text messaging, these phones could be the next outlet for spam. No state currently prohibits spam to cell phones. Cell phone spam is a major problem in Japan and Canada and is just beginning to turn up in the United States. This provision would put New York ahead of a potential problem.
-- FLAGGING PORNOGRAPHIC SPAM
This legislation requires commercial emails with sexually oriented materials to contain a label in the subject line of the message "ADV;ADLT" to indicate that the message is not suitable for minors. California, Indiana, Kansas, Minnesota, New Mexico, South Dakota, Pennsylvania, Utah, and Wisconsin have enacted similar legislation.
Violators of any of the provisions in the Anti Spam Act of 2003 would be subject to a fine of up to $500 per violation.
BANNING DECEPTIVE SPAM (S.1680, Sen. Rath)
The Senate will act on legislation to prohibit unsolicited commercial e-mail that uses a third party�s Internet address or domain name without permission, or contains false or missing routing information.
This bill, a recommendation of the 1999 Senate Task Force on Privacy Invasion, was one of the first anti-spam bills in the nation. This is the third consecutive year the Senate will pass this bill.
"Spam often contains false information to get around spam filters. By prohibiting false information, this legislation could make it easier for filters to work," Senator Rath said. "By preventing barrages of unsolicited mail from unscrupulous spammers, this measure will assist legitimate businesses that do commerce over the Internet because users will know the message is genuine."
A study of 1,000 spam e-mail messages by the Federal Trade Commission concluded that 66 percent of spam messages are false or deceptive. Thirty-three percent of the spam messages included false information about the sender; 22 percent had a misleading subject line, increasing to 34 percent for pornographic spam; and 40 percent made false claims in the text of the e-mail.
The bill provides for fines of up to $500 per violation.
Arkansas, California, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, Idaho, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Louisiana, Maryland, Minnesota, Missouri, Nevada, New Mexico, North Carolina, Ohio, Oklahoma, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, South Dakota, Tennessee, Utah, Virginia, Washington, West Virginia, Wisconsin, and Wyoming have enacted similar legislation.
Do Not Spam Registry (S.4511, Sen. Rath)
This bill would expand the Do Not Call Registry to include people who do not want to receive unsolicited spam e-mails.
"As more and more people become involved with the Internet, they are finding that electronic junk mail can be just as frustrating as the junk that clogs their mail box," said Senator Mary Lou Rath (R-C, Williamsville), who was one of the first legislators in the country to introduce anti-spam legislation. People should not have to waste their time sifting through dozens and dozens of solicitations every time they check their e-mail."
The bill provides for fines of up to $500 per violation.
CYBER-SQUATTING/DOMAIN NAME PIRACY (S.5154, Sen. Little)
The Senate will act on legislation, sponsored by Senator Elizabeth Little (R-C, Queensbury), that prohibits cyber-squatting and domain name piracy, and allows the Courts to enjoin the website host.
Cyber-squatting refers to registering, trafficking in, or using a domain name with bad-faith intent to profit from a trademark belonging to someone else. It refers to the practice of buying up domain names reflecting the names of existing people or businesses, intending to sell the names for a profit back to the person or business.
Domain name piracy refers to people who purchase your name or business and use the name for a web-site that does not in any way relate to the person or business.
"Earlier this year, the New York State Senate was a victim of domain name piracy, when someone gave false information to purchase the names of more than a dozen Senators and used them as domain names for fake web sites," Senator Little said. "Anyone who typed in elizabethlittle.com was redirected to a site related to drug paraphernalia. This scenario was also taking place with 15 other Senators, as well as legislators in several other states. Fortunately we were able to appeal to the company that hosted these web sites and get them shut down. This law would help prevent others from becoming innocent victims of domain name piracy."
PRIVACY POLICY ENFORCEMENT (S.600, Sen. Hannon)
The Senate will act on legislation, sponsored by Senator Kemp Hannon (R-C, Garden City), that creates a state Internet privacy law, to ensure that web site operators who hold out to the public that they have privacy policies that protect personal information, adhere to those policies. The law also gives the state the ability to enforce privacy protection rules.
"Neither federal nor state law protects the privacy of Internet users," Senator Hannon said. "Under this bill, Internet users' privacy would be protected by meaningful enforcement mechanisms and businesses would benefit by potential customers feeling secure enough to conduct business with them because consumer choices would, for the first time, include protecting their privacy with a clearly enforceable law."
Many companies that do business on the Internet have privacy policies that say they will not share or sell personal information to a third party. Under the provisions of this bill, the state would be able to act against an e-vendor that violates this voluntary agreement by fining them up to $1,000 per violation.
"The borderless nature of the Internet, and jurisdictional problems have made it difficult for states interested in protecting Internet privacy," Senator Hannon said. "This bill applies only to a web business that chooses to hold out to the public that it complies with the privacy law. In doing so, the business would be effectively submitting itself to New York State's jurisdiction, and the first enforceable Internet privacy law in the United States."
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