Canada’s Anti-Spam Legislation (CASL) came into effect on July 1, 2014. It is intended to protect Canadians while ensuring that businesses can continue to compete in the global marketplace. If you use electronic channels to promote or market your products or services, you need to understand and comply with the law.
Under the law, in order to send a commercial electronic message (such as email, SMS, instant messaging, etc) to an electronic address, you must meet the following requirements:
– You must have the recipient’s consent;
– You must identify yourself by providing your mailing address, a phone number for accessing an agent or a voice messaging system, an email address, or a web address;
-You must offer an unsubscribe mechanism; and
– You must be truthful. The message cannot be false or misleading.
If you commit a violation under the law, then you may be required to pay an administrative monetary penalty. The maximum amount of such a penalty, per violation, is $1 million for an individual, and for a business, it can go as high as $10 million!
It is also important to note that on July 1, 2017, the private right of action comes into force. This means that private individuals and organizations that are affected by a violation of CASL will be able to seek legal redress through civil court actions.
The federal government has excellent online resources about the Canada’s Anti-Spam Legislation including a dedicated website. Check out http://www.fightspam.gc.ca
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