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WHAT YOUR BUSINESS
NEEDS TO KNOW
ABOUT CANADAS
ANTI-SPAM LAW (CASL)
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OVERVIEW
Canadas Anti-Spam Law (CASL) comes into efect on July 1, 2014. The
Canadian government has dened spam as any Commercial Electronic
Message (CEM) sent without the express consent of the recipient(s).
The Canadian government hopes to
reduce unsolicited commercial messages
in addition to threats such as spyware,
phishing and malware.
THE CANADIAN GOVERNMENT
WILL BE INSPECTING:
Unsolicited CEMs designed to encourage
participation in a commercial activity. The
following types of communications are
considered CEMs that the government
will be targeting:
Emails
Text Messages
Instant Messages (IM)
Messages sent through
social networks
The government has announced an
independent non-government agency will
act as a Spam Reporting Centre which
will receive reports of spam and related
threats and work alongside the Canadian-
Radio-Television and Telecommunications
Communications Commission, the
Competition Bureau and the Ofce of the
Privacy Commissioner to investigate and
prosecute ofences.
Efective July 1, 2014 - CASL will require
consumers to opt-in to a companys
promotional campaigns by giving
consent if they want to receive CEMs.
Moving forward from that date, businesses
will need to obtain express or implied
consent from contacts to whom they wish
to send electronic promotional material.
Figure 1. CEM Figure 2. Non-CEM
Dear John Doe,
Sherpa Marketing would like to keep you updated with
our service offerings. Please download our app to see
offerings and prices.
Thanks,
Jane Doe
Dear John Doe,
It was great playing hockey with you last weekend. Are
you available to grab lunch this week?
Regards,
Fred Smith
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Spyware - Spyware describes
software that performs certain
behaviors, generally without
appropriately obtaining your consent
rst, such as:
Advertising
Collecting personal information
Changing the conguration of
your computer
Spyware is often associated with
software that displays advertisements
(called adware) or software that tracks
personal or sensitive information.
Phishing - A term used to describe
email messages, websites, and phone
calls that are designed to steal money.
Cybercriminals can do this by installing
malicious software on your computer
or stealing personal information of of
your computer. Cybercriminals also use
social engineering to convince you to
install malicious software or hand over
your personal information under false
pretenses. They might email you, call
you on the phone, or convince you to
download something from of a website.
Malware - Malware is short for
malicious software. Malware is
any kind of unwanted software that
is installed without your consent.
Viruses, worms, and Trojan horses
are examples of malicious software
that are often grouped together and
referred to as malware.
WHAT
IS CONSENT?
Your business can secure two types of consent:
Express consent means that an individual has explicitly agreed
(verbally, electronically or in writing) to receive CEMs from
the sender. This is the ideal form of consent as it never expires
(unless the recipient requests the sender to stop sending CEMs
(E.g. by clicking the unsubscribe button in an email)), and it
covers the sender legally. Examples:
Verbal Agreements The specic verbal agreement may
not be possible to document. In this case, ensure that you
document other faxes, emails and written correspondence
you may have had with the other party where they indicate a
willingness to receive CEMs from you.
Electronic Agreements Have a subscribe button with
support wording like by clicking the subscribe button, you
are agreeing to receive future electronic communications
from us.
Figure 3. Subscribe email
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Written Agreements Create a
physical document to be lled out
and signed by your customers and
prospective clients. One of Sherpas
clients keeps a logbook at point of sale
that they ask clients to sign with their
name and email address if they would
like to receive promotional CEMs. The
email addresses are then manually
entered into their CRM system.
All requests for consent must include
the following information:
i. The business name of the person
seeking consent or such persons
actual name (if a business name is
not used);
Example: Sherpa Marketing
(business name) or John Doe
(personal name) if business name
is not used.
ii. If the consent is sought on behalf
of another person, the name of the
person on whose behalf consent is
sought (the persons business name
or, if a business name is not used,
the actual name);
Example: John Doe wants to secure
consent form Person A. Jane Doe
will be the one contacting Person
A for consent on behalf John Doe.
Jane Doe must state John Does
name and information in the inquiry
as he is the one asking for consent.
iii. If consent is sought on behalf
of another person, a statement
clarifying who is seeking consent and
on whose behalf consent is sought;
Example: This is Jane Doe seeking
consent on behalf of John Doe.
iv. With respect to the person
seeking consent (or the person on
whose behalf consent is sought),
the mailing address, and either
a telephone number (providing
access to an agent or a voice
messaging system), an e-mail
address or a web address;
WHAT IS CONSENT? Continued
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v. The purpose or purposes for which consent is sought;
Example: Sherpa Marketing would like to send you the latest product and sales information.
vi. A statement indicating that the
person whose consent is sought can
withdraw their consent.
Example: An unsubscribe button at
the end of an email.
Implied Consent occurs when an individual
has not yet provided express consent,
however, based on the nature of your
relationship with them, you are able to
send the individual CEMs. Implied consent
can be secured in the following scenarios:
You have an existing business
relationship with the recipient.
An existing business
relationship exists when
the business and recipient
have completed a business
transaction within the past two
years of receiving a specic email.
A business transaction must be
proven with an invoice, bid or
quote on a specic project.
Invoice
Date: 14/04/2014
Invoice #: 6812
University of Manitoba
Supplier Services - Mario Lebar
Room 412 Administration Bldg.
Winnipeg, MB R3T 2N2
P.O. Number: C40506
Terms: Net 30
Due Date: 14/05/2014
Ship Via:
F.O.B.
Project Number: UM003sc - scope creep website redevelop
Balance Due:
Subtotal:
We appreciate your business.
GST Registration #: 867708935RT0001
Interest Charged at 2.5% Per Month On Overdue Accounts.
Description Amount Tax
Learner type landing page link fixing 75.00 GST
Redo art work for registration boxes 102.50 GST
Redirect setup 50.00 GST
Add back code removed by UMEE staff (Feb 28) and setup page to avoid error
in the future
300.00 GST
Permalink setup 375.00 GST
Legal Name: Martron Inc. O/A Sherpa Marketing
GST@5.0%
45.13
Total Tax
45.13
$947.63
$902.50
Figure 4. Unsubscribe button
Figure 5. Sample invoice
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You have non-business relationship
with the recipient.
Personal Relationship
A personal friendship or association
derived from participation in an
organization or cause.
Family Relationship
The electronic messages are relevant
to the recipients business, role,
function or duties, and the electronic
address has been conspicuously
published or disclosed, without a
statement that the person does not
wish to receive CEMs.
This essentially means that if an
individuals email address is published
on their website without stating that
they do not wish to receive CEMs,
you can contact them. With that
being said, it is certainly not our
recommendation to scrape email
addresses of of websites to build your
businesss database, as that is not in
the spirit of the law.
If your business operates through a
third-party yet your company still
sends electronic messages to the end
user, you have implied consent.
Example Company A is a
distributor who sells goods to a
retailor (Company B). Company A
has obtained the emails of end-
users buying its goods through
Company B. Company A has
implied consent to send CEMs to
the end user.
WHAT IS CONSENT? Continued
Figure 6. Publically displayed email
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YOUR BUSINESS HAS:
Immediate and unlimited ability
to send CEMs if:
You obtain express consent.
Implied consent until July 2016 if:
You complete a business transaction
(that can be proved with an invoice,
bid or quote)
You have a personal or
family relationship.
Unlimited implied consent if:
You have ongoing business dealings
with a client. (i.e. you have an active
business relationship that can be
proved with invoices, bids or quotes)
You have an ongoing personal or
family relationship.
Your business hasnt received
notication from a third-party you
conduct business with that the end
user of your products does not wish
to receive CEMs.
Implied consent allowing you to send a
single CEM if:
You have received a referral or
introduction to an individual from
someone who has already secured
express or implied consent with that
individual. In that case, you must
state the name and information of the
person who referred you, as noted in
the above.
You have obtained an individuals
information published publically online
without notication that they do not
wish to receive CEMs.
If an individual requests information or
has a question regarding your business.
TIMELINES SUMMARIZED
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INFORMATION REQUESTS
IMPORTANT - If an individual requests
information or has a question regarding
your business, this does not grant
implied consent. If this situation arises
after July 1st, 2014, you will be allowed
one opportunity (message) to obtain
consent. Sending additional CEMs will be
considered spam under the CASL law.
REFERRALS
The above rules also apply to referrals. You
are only allowed to send a prospective
client a one-time email in an attempt
to achieve consent. Additionally, this
message must include the full name of
the individual who gave you the referral,
and the identication and unsubscribe
requirements noted in the above.
Example: Sherpa Marketing does business
with Company A. Company B asks Sherpa
Marketing for the contact information for
Company A. Company B must include
both its contact information as well as
Sherpa Marketings contact information in
the request for consent.
INDIRECT RELATIONSHIPS
If your business operates through a
third-party yet your company still sends
electronic messages to the end user, the
same laws apply. That being said, if the
recipient noties the third-party they wish to
be removed from the mailing list, the third-
party has ten days to notify your business.
Example Company A is a distributor
who sells goods to a retailor (Company
B). Company A has obtained the emails
of end-users buying its goods through
Company B. Provided Company A has
secured express or implied consent, it
can send CEMs to the end user. If the
end user noties Company B they do not
wish to receive CEMs from Company A
anymore, Company B has ten-days to
notify Company A to take the end user of
its mailing list.
BURDEN OF PROOF
The burden of proof is on your company
in matters of express and implied
consent. You must be able to provide the
appropriate documentation if inspected.
Please see our blog post here on the
industrys best practices of managing and
providing proof of consent:
blog.sherpamarketing.ca
IMPORTANT NOTES
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Ensure a data system is implemented
to track when implied consent expires.
Your database should separate those
who have and have not given consent.
Create a system that efciently
documents electronic and written
materials that prove express and
implied consent.
Develop and launch email campaign
to secure express consent as soon
as possible.
Your business should create CEMs that
conform to the new law. Anti-Spam
friendly CEMs must include:
Information that identies the
sender, such as mailing address,
phone and email contact information
and/or website.
An unsubscribe option that allows the
recipient to resign from your mailing
list. After notication that the recipient
wishes to be removed from your
mailing list, you will have ten days to
remove them.
PREPARING YOUR
BUSINESS FOR
ANTI-SPAM LEGISLATION
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Here at Sherpa Marketing we are procient
in the design and execution of email blasts
to achieve consent from your mailing list
recipients. In addition to designing emails
that adhere to CASL, we are capable of
creating website landing pages aimed to
generate consent and keep customers
engaged with your business.
Sherpas are versed on CanSpam. If your
business needs guidance of any kind
related to Canadas Anti-Spam Law
(CASL) please do not hesitate to contact
us. www.sherpamarketing.ca/contact.aspx
HOW CAN WE HELP?
Sherpa Marketing accepts no liability for the content of this paper, or for the consequences of
any actions taken on the basis of the information provided. The views herein present Sherpa
Marketings current understanding of Canadas Anti-Spam Legislation and should by no means be
taken as a denitive legal analysis of Bill C-28: Canadas Anti-Spam Legislation.
SHERPAMARKETING.CA
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