[plug] [OT] Australian Spam Act

[Bernd Felsche]

On Wednesday 23 June 2004 09:22, Alex Polglaze wrote:
> Ben Jensz wrote:
> >> This is correct. If you unsubscribe now and then they send you
> >> further e-mails, then they are in breach of the act. If you do
> >> not unsubscribe then that is implied consent.
> >
> > I was under the impression that you still had to have a prior
> > business relationship... and that even if you did, they still
> > had to have a working unsubscribe.
> >
> > So in this case I don't think a business relationship exists, so
> > whether there is an unsubscribe system or not its still spam.

> No, this is where the implied consent comes from. It is considered
> that you have an existing relationship because they have you on
> their list. ...

False. Your email address on their list does not establish a prior
relationship. Email addresses are harvested by spammers from a
variety of sources, including "whois". It is possible for thousands
of spammers to have access to your email address by buying it on a
CD of harvested "addresses" (and about 15,000 of them are "mine").

That does not establish a prior _relationship_ with you.

> It is easy for you now to be removed, but the onus is on you to
> remove yourself. ...

Make thousands of phone calls to the thousands of businesses who
have obtained your email address by illegal harvesting or by
purchasing such a list?