CAN-SPAM Act of 2003
The CAN-SPAM Act of 2003 (15 U.S.C.
7701, et seq., Public Law No. 108-187, was
S.877 of the 108th United States Congress),
signed into law by President George W. Bush
on December 16, 2003, establishes the Un-
ited States’ first national standards for the
sending of commercial e-mail and requires
the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) to en-
force its provisions. The acronym CAN-SPAM
derives from the bill’s full name: Controlling
the Assault of Non-Solicited Pornography
And Marketing Act of 2003. This is also a
play on the usual term for unsolicited email
of this type, spam. The bill was sponsored in
Congress by Senators Conrad Burns and Ron
Wyden.
The law required the FTC to report back
to Congress within 24 months of the effect-
iveness of the act.[1] No changes were recom-
mended. It also requires the FTC to promul-
gate rules to shield consumers from un-
wanted mobile phone spam. On December
20, 2005 a detailed report to congress on the
effectiveness of the act indicated that the
volume of spam has begun to level off, and
due to enhanced anti-spam technologies, less
is reaching consumer inboxes. A significant
decrease in sexually-explicit e-mail was also
reported.[2] The CAN-SPAM Act is commonly
referred to by anti-spam activists as the YOU-
CAN-SPAM Act because the bill does not
require e-mailers to get permission before
they send marketing messages.[3] It also pre-
vents states from enacting stronger anti-
spam protections, and prohibits individuals
who receive spam from suing spammers. The
Act has been largely unenforced,[4] despite a
letter to the FTC from Senator Burns, who
noted that "Enforcement is key regarding the
CAN-SPAM legislation." In 2004 less than 1%
of spam complied with the CAN-SPAM Act of
2003.[5]
16 C.F.R. part 316, "Definitions and Imple-
mentation Under the CAN-SPAM Act; Final
Rule" went into effect July 7, 2008 and
changed the original CAN-SPAM Act of 2003
by (1) Adding a definition of the term
"person"; (2) Modifying the term "sender";
(3) Clarifying that a sender may c