Massachusetts files suit under Can-Spam

The Massachusetts Attorney General's office has filed suit against a Florida man suspected of sending spam e-mail to thousands of consumers, in what's considered to be the first claim brought by a state under the federal Can-Spam Act.

On Thursday, the state's attorney general, Thomas Reilly, filed a complaint against a business known as DC Enterprises, and its reported proprietor, William T. Carson, for allegedly distributing bulk e-mail that advertised inexpensive mortgage rates.

According to the Massachusetts complaint, Carson's e-mail campaigns ignored major stipulations of Can-Spam by featuring misleading header information and failing to offer an "opt out" opportunity for consumers who wanted to avoid further solicitation. The e-mails, which were sent bearing headers that offered loan approvals for individuals with bad credit and guaranteed financing, also failed to identify themselves as advertisements. Additionally, they lacked a working return e-mail address or valid postal address for DC Enterprises, as required by Can-Spam.

The claim says that recipients who clicked on links in Carson's e-mails were taken to a Web page where they were asked to provide personal information under the guise of applying for a loan. These pages sporadically offered people the ability to opt out of future marketing campaigns, but those functions did not actually stop delivery of subsequent e-mails, Reilly contends.

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