Post Tagged with: "phishing"

Yes Men Takedown Trades One Hoax For Another

Last month, the Canadian delegation at the Climate Change Conference in Copenhagen found itself targeted by the Yes Men in a widely publicized hoax.  The well-known activists satirized the Canadian government’s position on the environment by launching a pair of phoney websites that looked official but promoted different policies. The hoax attracted considerable media attention, prompting Prime Minister's Office spokesman Dimitri Soudas to label it a childish prank.  Soon after, Canadian officials quietly set out to shut down the two websites.  

My weekly technology law column (Toronto Star version, homepage version) notes that what followed creates a cause for concern, because Environment Canada appears to have misrepresented the harms posed by the sites in an effort to force them offline without a court order.

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January 11, 2010 16 comments Columns

Shutting Down Yes Men Trades One Hoax for Another

Appeared in the Toronto Star on January 11, 2010 as Ottawa Pulls Its Own Internet Hoax Last month, the Canadian delegation at the Climate Change Conference in Copenhagen found itself targeted by the Yes Men in a widely publicized hoax.  The well-known activists satirized the Canadian government’s position on the […]

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January 11, 2010 1 comment Columns Archive

Anti-Spam Bill Will Face Tough Fight Over Consumer Protections

The recent introduction of the Electronic Commerce Protection Act, Canada's long-awaited anti-spam bill, has been greeted with initial all-party support in the House of Commons. The bill just passed second reading with committee hearings the next step in the legislative process. My weekly technology law column (Toronto Star version, Ottawa Citizen version, homepage version) argues that looking ahead, the big fight seems destined to focus on the government's desire to establish a comprehensive regime with tough penalties that apply to most commercial communications to consumers.  Consumer groups will likely welcome the reforms, while some business and marketing organizations may paint a gloomy picture of the costs associated with the new regulations.

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May 19, 2009 6 comments Columns

Anti-Spam Bill Faces Fight Over Consumer Protections

Appeared in the Toronto Star on May 19, 2009 as Anti-spam Bill Targeting Phishers, Spyware Appeared in the Ottawa Citizen on May 19, 2009 as Long-Awaited Anti-Spam Bill Likely Faces a Few More Hurdles The recent introduction of the Electronic Consumer Protection Act, Canada's long-awaited anti-spam bill, has been greeted […]

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May 19, 2009 Comments are Disabled Columns Archive

The Electronic Commerce Protection Act – The Spam Prohibitions

The Electronic Commerce Protection Act (aka Bill C-27 or the anti-spam bill) is a lengthy, complicated piece of legislation.  At 69 pages, it involves many new prohibitions, enforcement measures, and changes to existing laws.  Given its complexity, I'll divide the substance of the bill into several separate postings.  This post focuses on the prohibitions – there are three primary prohibitions but it quickly gets complicated.  The short version of this is that the bill requires all senders to obtain express consent before sending commercial electronic messages (including email, instant message, etc.) and to include contact and unsubscribe information.  It also includes provisions designed to counter phishing, spyware, and botnets used to send spam.

The more detailed version is:

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April 24, 2009 24 comments News