Ohio legislation would send spammers to jail
Posted: Thu Dec 02, 2004 8:30 pm
[b]Ohio legislation would send spammers to jail[/b]
[font=\"Arial\"][i]Ohio legislators on Tuesday sent an antispam bill to Gov. Bob Taft, with the aim of joining other states that have laws that put spammers behind bars.[/i]
The bill, first introduced in January and already approved by the state Senate, on Tuesday overwhelmingly passed the Ohio House of Representatives, said an aide to Rep. Kathleen Walcher, who co-sponsored the bill.
Taft could not be immediately reached for comment. One industry source said the Ohio governor is expected to sign the bipartisan bill.
If signed into law, it would outlaw Internet ads that are deceptive or misleading and ban people from setting up false accounts to send spam, the junk e-mail that clogs consumers' online mailboxes and taxes the resources of Internet service providers.
The measure would also allow the state attorney general to impose criminal and civil sanctions against spammers.
The worst violators could face a minimum of six months in jail, as well as fines of $25,000 per violation, or $2 to $8 per violating e-mail. Their computer equipment could be confiscated, and Internet providers could sue for damages.
AOL spokesman Nicholas Graham called the Ohio bill "one of the strongest antispam measures in the country." Graham said the bill is aimed only at the worst offenders, who use fraud, deception and evasion to get their messages in front of consumers.
"This is not meant to snag Grandma sending her oatmeal cookie recipe," he said.
AOL, a unit of Time Warner, said it worked closely with the bill's sponsors.
The Ohio bill was modeled after the federal Can-Spam Act but adds tougher penalties.
Maryland has also adopted an antispam law with criminal penalties, and Virginia recently used its state law to send a North Carolina man to prison for sending hundreds of thousands of spam e-mail messages.
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Story Copyright © 2004 Reuters Limited. All rights reserved. [/size]
[url=\"http://news.com.com/Ohio+legislation+would+send+spammers+to+jail/2100-1030_3-5472453.html\"][Source][/url]
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[font=\"Arial\"][i]Ohio legislators on Tuesday sent an antispam bill to Gov. Bob Taft, with the aim of joining other states that have laws that put spammers behind bars.[/i]
The bill, first introduced in January and already approved by the state Senate, on Tuesday overwhelmingly passed the Ohio House of Representatives, said an aide to Rep. Kathleen Walcher, who co-sponsored the bill.
Taft could not be immediately reached for comment. One industry source said the Ohio governor is expected to sign the bipartisan bill.
If signed into law, it would outlaw Internet ads that are deceptive or misleading and ban people from setting up false accounts to send spam, the junk e-mail that clogs consumers' online mailboxes and taxes the resources of Internet service providers.
The measure would also allow the state attorney general to impose criminal and civil sanctions against spammers.
The worst violators could face a minimum of six months in jail, as well as fines of $25,000 per violation, or $2 to $8 per violating e-mail. Their computer equipment could be confiscated, and Internet providers could sue for damages.
AOL spokesman Nicholas Graham called the Ohio bill "one of the strongest antispam measures in the country." Graham said the bill is aimed only at the worst offenders, who use fraud, deception and evasion to get their messages in front of consumers.
"This is not meant to snag Grandma sending her oatmeal cookie recipe," he said.
AOL, a unit of Time Warner, said it worked closely with the bill's sponsors.
The Ohio bill was modeled after the federal Can-Spam Act but adds tougher penalties.
Maryland has also adopted an antispam law with criminal penalties, and Virginia recently used its state law to send a North Carolina man to prison for sending hundreds of thousands of spam e-mail messages.
[size=1]
Story Copyright © 2004 Reuters Limited. All rights reserved. [/size]
[url=\"http://news.com.com/Ohio+legislation+would+send+spammers+to+jail/2100-1030_3-5472453.html\"][Source][/url]
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