New Round of CAN-SPAM Indictments

Recently a jury in Arizona found three different parties guilty of violating various aspects of the CAN-SPAM act.

While the CAN-SPAM doesn't outlaw spamming per se, almost all spam sent currently is in violation of the act. On the other hand, most of its regulations aren't particularly prohibitive, so it's surprising that there isn't a higher level of compliance.

I think there are a handful of reasons for this:

Most spam is already in violation of the law, or at least promotes products that are of questionable legality. Hijacking thousands of computers to send email that sneaks around mail blockers is certainly theft of services. Online pharmacies operate in the gray area. It's not surprising someone already violating the law and getting away with it doesn't pay attention to the subtleties of a relatively un-enforced regulation.

How many CAN-SPAM violators have really been fined or jailed so far for sending junk spam email? Perhaps two dozen? I suspect there are nearly as many spammers as drug dealers. Imagine how little deterrence the law would offer if only a few dozen high-profile dealers were busted each year.

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