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      "summary": "Spam, also called unsolicited commercial email (UCE) or \u201cjunk email,\u201d aggravates many computer users. Not only can spam be a nuisance, but its cost may be passed on to consumers through higher charges from Internet service providers who must upgrade their systems to handle the traffic. Also, some spam involves fraud, or includes adult-oriented material that offends recipients or that parents want to protect their children from seeing. Proponents of UCE insist it is a legitimate marketing technique that is protected by the First Amendment, and that some consumers want to receive such solicitations.\nOn December 16, 2003, President Bush signed into law the Controlling the Assault of Non-Solicited Pornography and Marketing (CAN-SPAM) Act, P.L. 108-187. It went into effect on January 1, 2004. The CAN-SPAM Act does not ban UCE. Rather, it allows marketers to send commercial email as long as it conforms with the law, such as including a legitimate opportunity for consumers to \u201copt-out\u201d of receiving future commercial emails from that sender. It preempts state laws that specifically address spam, but not state laws that are not specific to email, such as trespass, contract, or tort law, or other state laws to the extent they relate to fraud or computer crime. It does not require a centralized \u201cDo Not Email\u201d registry to be created by the Federal Trade Commission (FTC), similar to the National Do Not Call registry for telemarketing. The law requires only that the FTC develop a plan and timetable for establishing such a registry, and to inform Congress of any concerns it has with regard to establishing it. The FTC submitted a report to Congress on June 15, 2004, concluding that a Do Not Email registry could actually increase spam.\nProponents of CAN-SPAM have argued that consumers are most irritated by fraudulent email, and that the law should reduce the volume of such email because of the civil and criminal penalties included therein. Opponents counter that consumers object to unsolicited commercial email, and since the law legitimizes commercial email (as long as it conforms with the law\u2019s provisions), consumers actually may receive more, not fewer, UCE messages. Thus, whether or not \u201cspam\u201d is reduced depends in part on whether it is defined as only fraudulent commercial email, or all unsolicited commercial email. Many observers caution that consumers should not expect any law to solve the spam problem\u2014that consumer education and technological advancements also are needed.",
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      "title": "\"Spam\": An Overview of Issues Concerning Commercial Electronic Mail",
      "summary": "Spam, also called unsolicited commercial email (UCE) or \u201cjunk email,\u201d aggravates many computer users. Not only can spam be a nuisance, but its cost may be passed on to consumers through higher charges from Internet service providers who must upgrade their systems to handle the traffic. Also, some spam involves fraud, or includes adult-oriented material that offends recipients or that parents want to protect their children from seeing. Proponents of UCE insist it is a legitimate marketing technique that is protected by the First Amendment, and that some consumers want to receive such solicitations. This report discusses this issue in detail, as well as related legislation.",
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      "id": "RL31953 2004-01-30",
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      "title": "\"Junk E-mail\": An Overview of Issues and Legislation Concerning Unsolicited Commercial Electronic Mail (\"Spam\")",
      "summary": "Unsolicited commercial e-mail (UCE), also called \u201cspam\u201d or \u201cjunk e-mail,\u201d aggravates many computer users. Not only can spam be a nuisance, but its cost may be passed on to consumers through higher charges from Internet service providers who must upgrade their systems to handle the traffic. Also, some spam involves fraud, or includes adult-oriented material that offends recipients or that parents want to protect their children from seeing. Proponents of UCE insist it is a legitimate marketing technique that is protected by the First Amendment. On December 16, President Bush signed into law S. 877, the Controlling the Assault of Non-Solicited Pornography and Marketing (CAN-SPAM) Act. The law, P.L. 108-187, went into effect on January 1, 2004.",
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      "retrieved": "2005-06-12T09:11:03",
      "title": "\"Junk E-mail\": An Overview of Issues and Legislation Concerning Unsolicited Commercial Electronic Mail (\"Spam\")",
      "summary": "Unsolicited commercial e-mail (UCE), also called \u201cspam\u201d or \u201cjunk e-mail,\u201d aggravates many computer users. Not only can spam be a nuisance, but its cost may be passed on to consumers through higher charges from Internet service providers who must upgrade their systems to handle the traffic. Also, some spam involves fraud, or includes adult-oriented material that offends recipients or that parents want to protect their children from seeing. Proponents of UCE insist it is a legitimate marketing technique that is protected by the First Amendment. While 36 states have anti-spam laws, there is no federal law specifically concerning spam. Nine \u201cantispam\u201d bills are pending in the 108th Congress: H.R. 1933 (Lofgren), H.R. 2214 (Burr-Tauzin-Sensenbrenner), H.R. 2515 (Wilson-Green), S. 563 (Dayton), S. 877 (Burns-Wyden), S. 1052 (Nelson-FL), S. 1231 (Schumer), S. 1293 (Hatch), and S. 1327 (Corzine). Two (S. 877 and S. 1293) have been reported from committee. Tables providing brief \u201cside-by-side\u201d comparisons of the bills are included at the end of this report.",
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      "retrieved": "2005-06-12T09:09:20",
      "title": "\"Junk E-mail\": An Overview of Issues and Legislation Concerning Unsolicited Commercial Electronic Mail (\"Spam\")",
      "summary": "Unsolicited commercial e-mail (UCE), also called \u201cspam\u201d or \u201cjunk e-mail,\u201d aggravates many computer users. Not only can spam be a nuisance, but its cost may be passed on to consumers through higher charges from Internet service providers who must upgrade their systems to handle the traffic. Also, some spam involves\r\nfraud, or includes adult-oriented material that offends recipients or that parents want to protect their children from seeing. Proponents of UCE insist it is a legitimate marketing technique that is protected by the First Amendment. While 34 states have anti-spam laws, there is no federal law specifically concerning spam. Nine \u201cantispam\u201d\r\nbills are pending in the 108th Congress: H.R. 1933 (Lofgren), H.R. 2214 (Burr-Tauzin-Sensenbrenner), H.R. 2515 (Wilson), S. 563 (Dayton), S. 877 (Burns-Wyden), S. 1052 (Nelson-FL), S. 1231 (Schumer), S. 1293 (Hatch), and S. 1327 (Corzine). Tables providing brief \u201cside-by-side\u201d comparisons of the bills are included at the end of this report.",
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      "date": "2003-06-25",
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      "title": "\"Junk E-mail\": An Overview of Issues and Legislation Concerning Unsolicited Commercial Electronic Mail (\"Spam\")",
      "summary": "Unsolicited commercial e-mail (UCE), also called \u201cspam\u201d or \u201cjunk e-mail,\u201d aggravates many computer users. Not only can spam be a nuisance, but its cost may be passed on to consumers through higher charges from Internet service providers who must upgrade their systems to handle the traffic. Also, some spam involves\r\nfraud, or includes adult-oriented material that offends recipients or that parents want to protect their children from seeing. Proponents of UCE insist it is a legitimate marketing technique that is protected by the First Amendment. While 34 states have anti-spam laws, there is no federal law specifically concerning spam. Nine \u201cantispam\u201d\r\nbills are pending in the 108th Congress: H.R. 1933 (Lofgren), H.R. 2214 (Burr-Tauzin-Sensenbrenner), H.R. 2515 (Wilson), S. 563 (Dayton), S. 877 (Burns-Wyden), S. 1052 (Nelson-FL), S. 1231 (Schumer), S. 1293 (Hatch), and S. 1327 (Corzine). Tables providing brief \u201cside-by-side\u201d comparisons of the bills are included in this report.",
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      "topics": [
        {
          "source": "LIV",
          "id": "Technology",
          "name": "Technology"
        },
        {
          "source": "LIV",
          "id": "Electronic mail systems - Law and legislation",
          "name": "Electronic mail systems - Law and legislation"
        },
        {
          "source": "LIV",
          "id": "Telecommunication",
          "name": "Telecommunication"
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    },
    {
      "source": "University of North Texas Libraries Government Documents Department",
      "sourceLink": "https://digital.library.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metacrs5507/",
      "id": "RL31953 2003-06-18",
      "date": "2003-06-18",
      "retrieved": "2005-06-12T09:07:46",
      "title": "\"Junk E-mail\": An Overview of Issues and Legislation Concerning Unsolicited Commercial Electronic Mail (\"Spam\")",
      "summary": "Unsolicited commercial e-mail (UCE), also called \u201cspam\u201d or \u201cjunk e-mail,\u201d aggravates many computer users. Not only can spam be a nuisance, but its cost may be passed on to consumers through higher charges from Internet service providers who must upgrade their systems to handle the traffic. Proponents of UCE insist it is\r\na legitimate marketing technique and protected by the First Amendment. While 33 states have anti-spam laws, there is no federal law. Six bills addressing the spam issue are pending in the 108th Congress: H.R. 1933 (Lofgren), H.R. 2214 (Burr-Tauzin-Sensenbrenner), S. 563 (Dayton), S. 877 (Burns-Wyden), S. 1052 (Nelson-FL), and S. 1231 (Schumer). Spam on wireless devices such as cell phones is discussed in CRS Report RL31636, Wireless Privacy: Availability of Location Information for Telemarketing.",
      "type": "CRS Report",
      "typeId": "REPORT",
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      "topics": [
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          "source": "LIV",
          "id": "Technology",
          "name": "Technology"
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        {
          "source": "LIV",
          "id": "Electronic mail systems - Law and legislation",
          "name": "Electronic mail systems - Law and legislation"
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          "id": "Telecommunication",
          "name": "Telecommunication"
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}