Are You Ready for Canada’s New Anti-Spam Law?

[La Toya Hodge (Polycom_LaToyaH)]

The Canadian Anti-Spam Legislation(CASL) went into effect  on July 1, 2014. It prohibits sending commercial electronic messages (CEMs) unless the recipient has given express consent, or falls into a category where there is implied consent or one of the exemptions applies. CEMs include any electronic message – text, sound, voice, image – sent to an electronic address for the purpose of encouraging participation in a commercial activity. It includes email, but also texts, tweets and instant messages. It does not include telephone messages or voice-mail. The onus to prove consent is on the sender.  

Why is it important?

Penalties for non-compliance are up to $1 million for individuals and $10 million for corporations PER violation. The law has limited protections for “honest mistakes” (if due diligence defense is managed).

CEMs between Polycom and Partners are covered by a B2B Exemption since we are in a contractual relationship doing business together.

For more information on CASL, please visit www.fightspam.gc.ca.