Safety of Electronic Communication — Problem of Anti-spam Regulations

Abstract

Unsolicited correspondence — so called ‘spam’ — is inextricably linked to electronic communications. It is widely considered to be the scourge of the information age and a crucial problem in respect of internet security. The phenomenon is closely associated with the development of electronic communications services. Taking into account the intense legal regulation, and not only that in EU countries, it is important to put the question — what is the reasons that current regulations seems to be insufficient. Is their ineffectiveness a result of objective factors such as the evolution of the phenomenon and insufficient flexibility of legal norms? Or maybe, legal protection models are based on a prior false assumption that it is possible to cope with a global problem and to protect against spam through national or regional regulations? The aim of this article is to try to answer these questions and, on the basis of comparative studies, try to create minimum standards for national legislation in the field of protection against spam. In my opinion the effectiveness of anti-spam regulation depends on the resources of law enforcement and the scope of the competences held by public authorities. Opportunities for international cooperation and cooperation with internet service providers and organisations in the private sector play an important role in the process of applying the law. The comparative studies on national legislations, EU directives and regulations of the OECD model indicate that the effectiveness of anti-spam protection depends on definitional consistency in describing the phenomenon in the widest possible range of national legal systems and of close international cooperation between competent national authorities.