The New Zealand Department of Internal Affairs : Services : Anti-Spam


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Anti-Spam

What is spam?
What are we doing about it in NZ?
The Unsolicited Electronic Messages Act 2007
Anti-Spam enforcement
Anti-Spam video
NEW! Spammer to pay $100,000 penalty (22/12/08)
Christchurch spam raid has sequel in court (14/10/08)

What is spam?

Spam is the generic term for the electronic commercial ‘junk mail’ you receive without having requested it. This includes unwanted messages sent to people’s email accounts or mobile phones.

The negative effects of spam are significant and far-reaching. Current estimates suggest that around 120 billion spam messages are sent every day. These emails clog up the Internet, disrupt email delivery, reduce business productivity, raise Internet access fees, irritate recipients and erode people’s confidence in using email.

These messages are essentially commercial in nature and often sent in bulk. Some spam is sent by legitimate businesses inviting the recipient to buy a product or service. Other spam may attempt to trick people into divulging their bank account or credit card details. Many spam messages also contain offensive or fraudulent material or spread computer viruses.

What are we doing about it in NZ?

The Department of Internal Affairs is employing a five-pronged strategy for tackling spam. This encompasses:

Directly enforcing the Unsolicited Electronic Messages Act 2007
Promoting education and awareness
Facilitating industry liaison
Monitoring emerging technologies
Working with international agencies.

The Unsolicited Electronic Messages Act 2007

The Unsolicited Electronic Messages Act 2007 came into effect on the 5th of September 2007. The Act defines spam as ‘unsolicited commercial electronic messages’.

The purposes of the Act are to:

Prohibit unsolicited commercial electronic messages (spam) with a New Zealand link (i.e. messages sent to, from or within New Zealand)
Require commercial electronic messages to include accurate information about the person who authorised the sending of the message and a functional unsubscribe facility to enable the recipient to instruct the sender that no further messages are to be sent to the recipient
Prohibit address-harvesting software being used to create address lists for sending unsolicited commercial electronic messages
Deter people from using information and communication technologies inappropriately.

The Act is also intended to encourage good direct marketing practice by:

Requiring electronic messages to contain a functioning unsubscribe facility
Ensuring electronic messages are sent only to customers who have consented to receiving it
Restricting the use of address-harvesting software.

The Act covers email, instant messaging, SMS and MMS (text and image-based mobile phone messaging) of a commercial nature. It does not cover faxes, Internet pop-ups or voice telemarketing.

Anti-Spam enforcement

The Department of Internal Affairs enforces the Unsolicited Electronic Messages Act 2007 by:

Investigating complaints about spam
Acting against ‘spammers’ who are deliberately flouting the law
Undertaking research into technologies used to send spam
Advising Government and organisations on spam matters
Liaising with relevant overseas bodies to ensure New Zealand complies with international agreements concerning spam.

Businesses and individuals are able to lay complaints about spam with the ‘Anti-Spam Compliance Unit’. The Department may investigate these complaints and take the appropriate action.

If you have any questions you can contact us at info@antispam.govt.nz

Note: The Department also enforces the Films, Videos, and Publication Classification Act 1993. If you are concerned that something you have seen may be objectionable please fill out an online Content Complaint Form or contact our censorship inspectors.

Anti-Spam video

This video details the requirements businesses need to follow to comply with the Unsolicited Electronic Messages Act 2007. It features members of the Anti-Spam Compliance Unit as well as Keith Norris (NZ Marketing Association), Laura O'Gorman (Buddle Findlay), and David Farrar (Internet New Zealand).

The video is available at the links below. If you have a slow connection you may want to view the low resolution file. The duration of the video is 5.48 minutes - a written transcript is available here: Anti-Spam video transcript.

Link to high resolution Anti-Spam video

Anti-Spam video - high res (.wmv)** 15.9m

Anti-Spam video - low res (.wmv)** 3.5m

**This file is in Windows Media Video (.wmv) format. You need to have the Windows Media Player installed on your computer. You can download a free version from the Microsoft Windows Media site.


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Last updated: 06/03/2009