PUBLIC MARKS from multilinko with tag spam

Earlier this week, the federal government Task Force on how to combat spam issued its report. The Task Force was made up of industry, government and consumer representatives, and studied the problem for one year. It found that while Canada has laws that prohibit specific aspects of spam, these laws are insufficient to achieve the overall goal of deterring spammers in Canada. The group concluded that a specific anti-spam law is needed, prohibiting e-mail marketers from sending messages to consumers without consent. In addition, it recommended new powers for consumers to sue spammers, more resources for government agencies responsible for fighting spam, and greater international cooperation to track down and stop spammers.

Canada's National Task Force on Spam released its final report today. Despite prior spam actions on privacy grounds in Canada, the task force is calling for a tough new anti-spam law including penalties for failure to obtain appropriate opt-in consents before sending commercial email as well as private right of action to encourage Canadian lawsuits against spammers.