OTA Recommends Improvements to Can-Spam Act, in FTC Comments

The Online Trust Alliance said additional improvements are needed in an anti-spam law, in comments to the FTC, which is seeking input on the Controlling the Assault of Non-Solicited Pornography and Marketing (Can-Spam) Act by Thursday (see 1706220013). OTA, an Internet Society initiative, said the law and business self-regulation have slowed spam growth and recommended changes without imposing extra costs for organizations. They include providing additional examples about the placement, color, size and terminology of the opt-out option; enabling consumers to opt out of multiple mail streams through one request; specifying the "from" line in an email since email headers or mass email services have many "from" addresses; clarifying new types of "informational" messages like alerts about news, product updates and site activity; and giving opt-out lists a "lifetime e.g., 5 years), after which the names must be purged from the system" but not subject to enforcement unless a customer relationship is restarted. OTA Director Jeff Wilbur said in a news release its recent audit found 94 percent of top retailers honored an unsubscribe request within three business days. Companies including Act-On Software, American Greetings, LashBack, Optizmo, PeopleConnect, PostUp, ValiMail and Yes Lifecycle Marketing contributed to OTA's comments. Nearly 80 people, including University of California, Berkeley School of Law adjunct law professor and FTC expert Chris Hoofnagle, have filed comments in Project No. R711010. Hoofnagle said there's a continuing need for the Can-Spam rule and the technical interventions can reduce spam.