Email

Nobody wants spam or wants to be labelled a spammer. These issues are covered here. You'll find more information that's relevant to email in other parts of the site.

See also: Legal info about Data Protection, Financial Services and Security.

OUT-LAW Guides (UK law)

• Electronic signatures – FAQs 
• Encryption and digital signatures
• Information overload – the problem with unwanted emails
  The effect of the Directive on Privacy and Electronic Communications on spam.
• Spam law
  A discussion of the UK Regulations, EU Directives and organisations that regulated spam.
• Email as court evidence
  How to ensure that yoru email evidence is admitted in court.
• Email notices
  There is no legal authority on the effectiveness of these notices in email messages; but that is not to say that they should not be used, provided care is taken in drafting them.
• The CAP Code
  Marketing by email is now regulated by an overly complex patchwork of rules and standard. Here we discuss the basic rules in this area and suggest a number of practical compliance measures.
• Email marketing: when to use opt-in and when to use opt-out
  Confusion still reigns about the use of opt-in and opt-out for email marketing purposes. The confusion centres around what is required to fulfil the obligation to obtain a user's "prior consent".

OUT-LAW Guides (Hong Kong)

• Electronic signatures

Recent OUT-LAW News

• Top retailers breach email footer laws, says survey
• Bank scammers scammed, says security researcher
• Google, Yahoo! and Amazon sued over email patent
• Wi-Fi spam man avoids can
• Feds told they need warrants for webmail

Useful links

• Privacy and electronic communications Directive 2002
• Privacy and Electronic Communications (EC Directive) Regulations 2003
• See also: Information Commissioner's Guidance to the Regulations: Part 1: Marketing by electronic means (44-page PDF) and Part 2: Security, Confidentiality, Traffic and Location Data, Itemised Billing, CLI and Directories(18-page PDF)