Glossary Terms

CAN-SPAM

CAN-SPAM is the US federal law, passed in 2003, that sets the baseline rules for commercial email sent to recipients in the United States. Unlike Canada's CASL, it works on an opt-out model: you may legally send a first commercial email without prior consent, as long as the message follows the rules and you honor any unsubscribe request promptly. Those rules are accurate sender information, an honest subject line, a disclosure when the message is an ad, a real physical mailing address, an easy way to opt out, and acting on opt-outs within 10 business days. Each violating email can carry a civil penalty of tens of thousands of dollars (the FTC raises the exact maximum each year), enforced by the FTC and state attorneys general.