Anti-Spam Act Ignored, Ridiculed?

Written by Anita Campbell
Published January 14, 2004

Well, here's a sorry state of affairs:

  • The newly passed Anti-Spam Act in the United States is being universally ignored, according to at least one survey.
  • The Act is being almost ridiculed in some quarters as being ineffective at best, and at worst giving "spam gangs" a cloak of legitimacy.
  • And to top everything off, the Act has burdened legitimate businesses with yet another layer of legal requirements, it now appears.
  • According to the Spamhaus Project, 90% of spam received in North America and Europe comes from a hard-core group of 200 spam outfits. The vast majority of spam you receive in your inbox is NOT coming from legitimate companies trying to sell their products — it's from this "Gang of 200."

    If that's accurate, then the Anti-Spam Act has just added an unnecessary regulatory burden to legitimate businesses in the U.S. who were not the problem in the first place.

    But never fear. In typical American entrepreneurial fashion, the Anti-Spam Act could be a boon for some small businesses, including (1) companies offering services that will be of much more practical use than the new law to help filter out spam, and (2) service providers such as marketing consultants and lawyers offering to help the legitimate marketers comply with the new law.

    This post is adapted from one that first appeared in Small Business Trends, the author's weblog.

    Anita Campbell is the Editor of the award-winning Small Business Trends (www.smallbiztrends.com) website and host of her own talk radio program, Small Business Trends Radio, on the WSRadio.com Internet network.
    Keep reading for information and comments on this article, and add some feedback of your own!
    Anti-Spam Act Ignored, Ridiculed?
    Published: January 14, 2004
    Type:
    Section: Sci/Tech
    Filed Under: Sci/Tech: Internet, Sci/Tech: Software
    Writer: Anita Campbell
    Anita Campbell's BC Writer page
    Anita Campbell's personal site
    Spread the Word
    Like this article?
    Email this
    Submit to del.icio.us Save to del.icio.us
    RSS Feeds
    All RSS Feeds (240+)
    Comments on this article
    BC articles by Anita Campbell
    Sci/Tech: Internet
    Sci/Tech: Software
    All Sci/Tech Articles
    All BC articles
    All BC Comments

    Comments

    #1 — January 15, 2004 @ 20:45PM — Hal Pawluk [URL]

    The problem with the CAN-SPAM act is that it is, as someone else first said, the "Yes-you-CAN-SPAM" act.

    I've been arguing against it since it first was floated a couple of years or so ago. It was never going to do any good, and the only real thing it has accomplished is that it preempted stronger state laws.

    But, of course, the politicians can now point with pride in the next election, since no one will really know what it's about.

    Want comments emailed to you? No spam, promise! Address:

    Add your comment, speak your mind

    (Or ping: http://blogcritics.org/mt/tb/11721)

    Personal attacks are not allowed. Please read our comment policy.





    Remember Name/URL?

    Please preview your comment!

    Fresh
    Articles
    Fresh
    Comments