As internet technology becomes more sophisticated, so do those who choose to exploit it. Most internet users have at some point or another fallen victim to threats posed by spam emails clustered within their inbox. Spam emails have become an extreme nuisance not only to internet users, but also large and small businesses. Today it is reported that some 85% of all emails are junk emails. The unfortunate part is that this number will only increase with time. This has driven governments worldwide to take action in protecting the privacy and well-being of the internet users. Anti spam laws have been put in place to dwindle the ever increasing number of spammers. The effectiveness of such laws depends not only on those left to enforce them, but also on those asked to report questionable activity.
There is an anti spam law in EU but its implementation depends on each European country. After almost two years of lobbying by internet service providers and consumer interest groups, the European Union passed a stringent anti spam law. It is clearly stated that companies should not send unsolicited emails to consumers until they have consented to such correspondence. This opt-in directive states that people who send commercial emails without permission would be fined. This differs from the opt-out directive as issued by the US through via the CAN-SPAM Act (passed in 2003). This legislation asks the recipients unsubscribe from emails to alleviate their spam problems.
Italy was the first European country to adopt anti spam law in 2003. It made it a crime for businesses to send emails without the consent of the consumer. Spammers may have to cough up fines if they do otherwise and might also have to face imprisonment. Denmark had already made it illegal to send unsolicited emails. It implemented the directive by amending existing laws. Likewise, other European countries have adopted similar directives aimed at making it illegal to spam internet users.
It is not enough to simply delete spam emails with disregard for the thousands, or possibly millions other others, who’ve received an identical message. Reporting spam is the best long term solution to end the growing menace. With spam laws now in place, there are authorities who are able to penalize the spammers for their activities. Reporting spam would ensure that the spammers are prosecuted. Millions of users are spared every time a spammer is brought to justice.
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