Spam we all get it, we all don’t want it, the ACMA (Australian Communications and Media Authority) is fighting to get rid of it, the internet highway has major traffic jams because of it and some spam messages spread viruses.
How can you tell a message you are receiving is spam, if it doesn’t identify the person or organisation that is sending the message. If the message doesn’t have a functional unsubscribe facility so you can opt out of receiving the message. If you are sending messages from your organisation then you must have consent from the receiver.
Spam stands for Stupid Pointless Annoying Messages and is not just email on the computers it is also sms and mms messaging on a mobile phone of commercial interest
Ways to avoid spam:
· Avoid giving your email address out
· When signing up for something make sure your email is not going to be given to sister companies and if you are not wanting to receive frequent emails then you need to make sure you un tick any unnecessary boxes.
· You can get spam filtering software on your computer
· Always delete any suspicious emails as this could stop viruses entering your computer.
The spam filtering software has good points and bad points as some times it can not only filter out the junk mail it can also block a genuine message. So it might be best not to block them but to have them sent to a separate folder. Then you can sort them, and decide for yourself which is Spam and which is a genuine email. You then just delete the emails that you don’t recognise as opening them could lead to further problems.
The ACMA is a government organisation trying to prevent spam. The spam act 2003 says. “It is illegal for unsolicited commercial electronic messages that have an Australian link to be sent, or cause to be sent. A message has an Australian link if it originates or was commissioned in Australia, or originates overseas but has been sent to an address accessed in Australia.” http://www.acma.gov.au/ The penalties for repeat corporate offenders are very high with fines of up to million dollars a day.
When you are in business you may want to purchase lists of email addresses or mobile numbers so you can market your business. If you do this then you must ask to see proof that these lists have been obtained or where these lists came from. If you send out emails from one of these list without an opt out feature and this person hasn’t given you consent to receive emails. Then you are the one who will get fined under the spam act not the company who sold you the list.
Are you sending spam?
· You cannot send an email to see if the customer wants to receive emails from you.
· Pre ticked boxes are not to be used the client has to physically tick the box
· If you do not hear from the customer you cannot assume this is ok
If in business we make sure we don’t spam and we as clients report spam then perhaps more emails would be read instead of just going to the junk folder.
What to do with the emails and sms that you believe to be spam:
The only way to stop receiving Spam is to report the offenders to the ACMA so they can deal with the email and warn other people on their web site. They do have a section covering all the latest scams so you can check in every now and again to see what’s new to avoid.
The email that you believe to be Spam should be forwarded to Spam Intelligence Database at report@submit.spam.acma.gov.au
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