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About the ACA
• Independent government regulator• Ensures industry compliance with
legislation (Telecommunications Act 1997, Spam Act 2003) and with licence conditions, codes and standards
• Works with communications industry to achieve active self-regulation
• Monitors effect of regulations to ensure they meet community’s needs
• Consumer protection and education role
Fighting spam
• 1. Legislation• 2. Education (business and consumer)• 3. Industry partnerships• 4. Technological solutions• 5. International cooperation
The Australian Government’s five-part strategy:
Spam: background information• Spam is now over 60% of email traffic• Often carries viruses• Linked to crime (fraud and scam emails)• Offensive content• Threatening viability of email• Less than 2% of spam comes from
Australian sources
Spam Act 2003
• Took effect April 2004• ‘Unsolicited commercial electronic
messages’ must not be sent• Covers email, SMS (text messages),
MMS (multi-media messages) and iM (instant messaging)
• Does not cover faxes, telemarketing, pop-ups
• A single message can be spam
Spam Act 2003
• Consent (express or inferred);
• Identify; and
• Unsubscribe
All commercial electronic messages require:
+ No address-harvesting software or harvested lists
What is consent?Two types of consent: Express and Inferred• How can I give express consent?
– filling in a paper or web-based form– ticking a box– consenting in person or over the phone
• How can my consent be inferred?– strong existing business or other relationships– ‘conspicuous publication’ of a work-related electronic address (conditions apply)
When can my consent be inferred?1. Through a strong existing business or
other relationship- Must be a ‘reasonable expectation’ of receiving commercial messages from that source- Casual or one-off transactions not enough
2. When your work-related electronic address is ‘conspicuously published’
- E.g. on website, newspaper, phonebook- Message must relate directly to nature of your
work
Identify and Unsubscribe
As well as meeting the consent condition, all commercial electronic messages must include:
• Information that allows you to identify the organisation that authorised the message; and
• An unsubscribe facility so you can ‘opt out’ of future messages
- Must be easy to use, and at low or no cost to you- Requests must be honoured within 5 working days
Exemptions
Designated Commercial Electronic Messages
• Are exempt from the Act’s consent and unsubscribe conditions
• But must include accurate sender information• Designated messages include:
- Purely factual information- Certain messages from: charities; government; religious organisations; registered political parties; educational institutions (past and present students + their families)
Spam reduction tips
Protect your email address from spammers:
• Try not to reveal your address when online• Use different addresses for specific purposes• Protect your mobile phone number too• Read sign-up and privacy conditions carefully• If you have a website:- List a non-personal email address; and- Omit the @ symbol; or- Post the address as a image, not text
Spam reduction tips
Boost your internet security:• Use filtering software to reduce incoming
spam• Don’t be an ‘accidental spammer’: ensure
spammers can’t send spam through your computer or server. Protect yourself with…- Anti-virus software- Firewalls- Security patches- Long and random passwords- Treat attachments with caution
Unsubscribing from spam
Check the subject line to judge the risk…
• Legitimate Australian businesses:- Goods or services usually genuine- Safe to unsubscribe- Should honour request within 5 working days
• Professional spammers:- Dubious content: Viagra, porn, get-rich schemes
etc.- Risky to unsubscribe (tells spammer you exist!)- Best to delete message without opening it
Email scams and fraud
• Growing link between spam and crime• Remember: if an offer sounds too good to
be true… it probably is!• Protect your personal information online• Ignore emails touting ‘get-rich-quick’
schemes• Beware of phishing scams:
- Emails that pretend to be from your bank, asking you to click a link to the bank’s website and enter your account details and password. Don’t be fooled!
Reporting spam
You can report spam, or make a complaint about spam, through the ACMA’s website…
www.acma.gov.au/spamClick on: ‘Reporting spam’