Congress Mounts Attack on Spam

WASHINGTON, D.C. -- Tired of spam? Well, the government thinks you might be and is making strides towards keeping unwanted solicitations out of your in-box.

A bill designed to give consumers and Internet service providers greater control over unwanted e-mail, commonly known as spam, was introduced Wednesday by the same U.S. representatives who sponsored the legislation in the last Congress.

Round Two With the Senate

Representative Heather Wilson (R-New Mexico) and Representative Gene Green (D-Texas) resubmitted the Unsolicited Commercial E-Mail Act. The bill introduced Wednesday is identical to the bill that passed the House in the last Congress by a vote of 427 to 1. It has been assigned to the House Energy and Commerce Committee, a spokesperson for Wilson says.

The bill stalled in the Senate last year after being introduced late in the session, but "we are optimistic that we will have success this year," the spokesperson says. The Senate is expected to schedule a hearing of the bill, he adds.

The bill is designed to give consumers the power to block unwanted e-mail; it provides ISPs who bear the cost of delivering spam with a legal right of action to block those who dump unwanted messages onto their networks, according to a statement issued by Wilson's office. The bill already has more than 60 co-sponsors, the statement says.

Spammers Can't Hide

The bill would require accurate return addresses on unsolicited commercial e-mail; make it illegal to continue sending junk e-mail to someone who has asked to be removed from a distribution list; require unsolicited commercial e-mail to be labeled; and require ISPs to let their customers opt out of receiving junk e-mail if the ISP profits from allowing it into their system.

The bill would also set a penalty for continuing to send junk e-mail after someone has asked for it to stop. ISPs could sue spammers for $500 per message if they violate their antispam policy.

While the Unsolicited Commercial E-Mail Act languishes in Congressional sessions, PC World has some tips on how you can take on spammers yourself.