16 May 2000

Text: Sen. Lieberman Statement on Stopping Unwanted E-mail

Senator Joe Lieberman is among the sponsors of a new bill to regulate electronic mail to "impose common-sense boundaries on the purveyors of unsolicited commercial E-mail."

The Democratic Senator from Connecticut decries the proliferation of unwanted E-mail, much of which he says is either "pornographic" or "trash."

To better control unsolicited E-mail, sometimes referred to as "spam," Lieberman says this bill would call for senders of commercial messages to include valid return addresses and accurate information on its origin, and to respect refusals of such mail.

(Following is the text of the statement)

(begin text)

Washington, D.C.

May 11, 2000

STATEMENT OF SENATOR JOE LIEBERMAN

ON INTRODUCTION OF ANTI-SPAMMING LEGISLATION

WASHINGTON - Senator Joe Lieberman made the following statement today at a news conference announcing legislation aimed at curbing the assault of unsolicited commercial E-mail, or "spam," on the Internet:

I am pleased to join my colleagues today to shine a light on a problem that has reached epidemic proportions in the Internet community: the proliferation of unwanted, unsolicited, and often unwholesome commercial E-mails commonly known as spam.

Many people think of spam as little more than the tedious junk mail that requires them to wade through their in-boxes with a finger on the "delete" button. But what we've learned about the content and quantity of spam suggests a more serious problem. Spam undermines the appeal of the Internet by imposing undue costs on consumers. And it diminishes our confidence in the Net by placing our children in harm's way.

Spam is a tremendous nuisance. It is not requested by the receiver. It almost never contains any information of substance or value. It is frequently nothing more than thinly disguised invitations to visit pornographic Web sites. Even when spam isn't X-rated, it is too often trash, camouflaging marketing ploys, pyramid schemes, mindless chain letters, and other unwanted solicitations. Spam intentionally misleads, with cryptic or deceptive subject headers that convey a false sense of the E-mail's true contents. It is costly, destructive, and an invasion of our privacy.

Unfortunately, spam shows no sign of going away on its own. To the contrary, the problem is quickly getting worse. America Online reports that 30 percent of all E-mail traveling through its system is spam. Some estimates suggest that 10 percent of the world's E-mail is of the unsolicited commercial variety.

AOL and other Internet Service Providers have spent tens of millions of dollars to handle the huge volumes of spam entering their systems every day, and to restore systems disabled by spam. More recently, these providers have begun investing significant resources to filter out spam. Ultimately, these costs are passed on to consumers through increased access fees.

While several states, including Connecticut, have passed laws to help solve the problem and relieve this cyberclutter, Congressional action is needed because many of these laws can only reach violators located within state lines. Only Congress has the power to regulate interstate commerce and address this problem on a national scale.

Our objective is not to strangle the Internet with government regulation or to ban spam outright. Rather, we simply set out to give individuals control of their own E-mail accounts and to address the cost-shifting problems wrought by the proliferation of spam. The CAN-SPAM Act would impose common-sense boundaries on the purveyors of unsolicited commercial E-mail. Our bill calls for all spam messages to contain valid return addresses and requires all spam senders to honor "opt-out" requests from individuals who wish not to receive spam in the future. It prohibits header forgery and misleading routing information, so consumers can discern the origins of these E-mails. It authorizes the Federal Trade Commission to pursue violations of the law and empowers Internet Service Providers to post legally enforceable policies regulating spam.

This legislation will not completely stop unwanted E-mails from reaching consumers' mailboxes. But it takes important first steps toward protecting individual privacy and promoting responsible use of the Internet by balancing consumer protections with the openness that makes the Internet such a revolutionary and productive medium.

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