Compliance Blog

The FTC recently approved four new rule provisions under the CAN-SPAM Act of 2003.  (And can any of you remember what CAN-SPAM stands for?  I didn't think so. It is the Controlling the Assault of Non-Solicited Pornography and Marketing Act of 2003.  There you have it.)

You can access the FTC press release about the changes here.  That page has a link to the new rules.  The changes do not appear to be that drastic.  Here's a broad overview:

(1) an e-mail recipient cannot be required to pay a fee, provide information other than his or her e-mail address and opt-out preferences, or take any steps other than sending a reply e-mail message or visiting a single Internet Web page to opt out of receiving future e-mail from a sender

(2) the definition of “sender” was modified to make it easier to determine which of multiple parties advertising in a single e-mail message is responsible for complying with the Act’s opt-out requirements

(3) a “sender” of commercial e-mail can include an accurately-registered post office box or private mailbox established under United States Postal Service regulations to satisfy the Act’s requirement that a commercial e-mail display a “valid physical postal address”

(4) a definition of the term “person” was added to clarify that CAN-SPAM’s obligations are not limited to natural persons.

Here is a link to NCUA's Regulatory Alert on CAN-SPAM requirements.  And here's a link to NAFCU's Regulatory Alert on the implementation of the CAN-SPAM requirements. (NAFCU Member Log In Needed.)  And remember this about CAN-SPAM: messages categorized as “transactional or relationship” are subject only to the Act’s prohibition on false or misleading transmission information.