Can-Spam Concerns

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Posted on 05 May 04

The National Association of Insurance and Financial Advisors (NAIFA) expressed its concerns with a possible "do not e-mail" registry in comments to the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) this past week.

The FTC is considering the issue as a result of the CAN-SPAM Act, passed by Congress last year, which calls for a study on a national "do not e-mail" list similar to the "do not call" rule.

"A do not e-mail registry is likely to be an ineffective vehicle for stemming the tide of SPAM," writes Heather Eilers-Bowser, NAIFA's director of federal relations in comments sent to FTC Chairman Timothy J. Muris. "The design of the registry is costly and cumbersome for businesses, particularly because e-mail addresses, unlike telephone numbers, cannot be segregated geographically." Some spammers, she writes, "may well ignore a do not e-mail registry or even use such a registry as another ready source of e-mail addresses to bombard."

The registry was one of the issues raised by NAIFA in the letter. NAIFA also wants the FTC to ensure that insurance agents remain free to contact their clients by e-mail under the FTC's limited definition of "transactional or relationship messages," which are permitted, and that referral business not be limited by regulations on e-mail forwarding.

"As any of our members will attest, referrals are a key component of the insurance business," said Eilers-Bowser. "If an individual feels they have been well served by an insurance agent and that someone they know would benefit from hearing from that agent, then the FTC should not limit those interactions."

Currently, the FTC's advanced notice of proposed rulemaking regarding "forward-to-a-friend" electronic mail indicates that the FTC may limit these referrals.

"Referrals are a valuable and relatively unobtrusive form of commercial activity. Consumers and agents will benefit from the continuation of 'forward-to-a-friend' messages and referrals followed by an agent's direct contact. We urge the FTC to allow these practices to continue unabated," she said.