This article aims to provide guidance to website owners, writers, and digital marketers on how to avoid being labeled as spammers. Anyone who owns a website, webpage, or electronic newsletter, or uses email for communication, article publication, or URL promotion, can potentially be accused of spamming. Understanding the concept of spam is the first step towards prevention. However, there is no universally accepted definition of spam.
The Internet as we know it today is a product of the collaborative efforts of the Internet Engineering Task Force (IETF). This large, open international community of network designers, operators, vendors, and researchers is responsible for the evolution of the Internet architecture and its smooth operation. They are the ones who write the guidelines (RFC) and standards that everyone adheres to for the Internet to function. They also wrote the Netiquette Guidelines (RFC1855). For more information, visit IETF.
The Coalition Against Unsolicited Commercial Email (CAUCE) was created by netizens to advocate for a legislative solution to the problem of UCE (also known as "spam"). However, they do not specifically define spam, but provide a list of characteristics of emails sent by disreputable marketers promoting pyramid schemes, chain letters, etc.
From my research, spam has been defined in various ways, including junk email, unsolicited bulk email (UBE), unsolicited commercial email (UCE), and unrequested email.
Here are some actions that could potentially be considered spam:
Most Internet Service Providers (ISPs) and web hosting companies are anti-spam. They have to be because of the severe consequences of being labeled tolerant of spam, and particularly being listed on the Realtime Blackhole List maintained by Mail Abuse Prevention System LLC (MAPS).
According to the MAPS website, they are a not-for-profit California organization whose mission is to defend the Internet's email system from abuse by spammers. Their principal means of accomplishing this mission is by educating and encouraging ISPs to enforce strong terms and conditions prohibiting their customers from engaging in abusive email practices.
ISPs that share MAPS concerns about the harm caused by spam often request access to MAPS' databases so that they can decide whether to block email which originates from the listed sites.
To protect yourself from spam complaints, find an ISP or hosting company that takes a proactive approach to spam complaints. Review their Acceptable Use Policy (AUP) or Terms of Service (TOS). If the AUP or TOS does not state how or what their process is for handling spam complaints, ASK! Also ask them about their attitude regarding SpamCop, which appears to be becoming the defacto spam clearing house.
When an ISP or hosting company receives a spam complaint, their policy should be to diligently and swiftly investigate the reported incident. They should make every attempt to determine the actual origin of an email, as well as the intention before making a determination. Their policy should be to issue a warning first.
If you have an opt-in, opt-out mailing list, it should not be a problem. Even then the possibility does exist for someone to "forget" that they opted in. Using a double opt-in method list is ideal for maintaining opt-in lists. The request to be added to a list is submitted and then the submitter has the requirement to confirm the request prior to actually being placed on the mailing list.
People writing articles for publication in electronic newsletters should be particularly careful in selecting their ISPs and hosting companies. The possibility exists that an article could be published in a newsletter that someone claims to be spam.
In conclusion, there isn't a set, specific method of determining how someone will react to a mailing, however using common sense, and reading as much as possible about the pitfalls of spam, should steer readers clear of any major problems.
For further reading, you may find these links helpful:
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