Spam law

At the end of 2008, an amendment to Section 30 of the Communications Law (Bezeq and Broadcasting) (Amendment No. 40), 2008 came into effect. It was passed in the Knesset on the 22nd of Iyar, 5768 (May 27, 2008); the bill and explanatory notes were published in Government Bills – 182, dated the 13th of Sivan, 5765 (June 20, 2005), page 886.

What does the amendment to the law say? The amendment prohibits sending commercial advertisements in the following ways: by email, fax, SMS or WhatsApp messages, or any other electronic messaging software, as well as through recorded message deliveries, all provided the recipient has not approved it.

The legislator’s goal was to prevent the phenomenon of mass-distributed advertisements known as “spam” or “junk mail.”

It should be noted that consent to receive such promotional material must be given in advance and explicitly.

However, since then, all companies have “become more sophisticated,” and in practice, every time a citizen requests to join a consumer club, one of the conditions is approval to receive junk mail.

Worldwide, there are two methods: The first – the American approach – allows sending spam to any recipient unless they refused to receive it.

The European method – according to which sending spam to a recipient is prohibited unless they have given their explicit and prior consent, and they are also given the option to refuse receiving spam at any time.

It is important to remember that the law It only applies to commercial advertising, so for example, the law does not apply to election propaganda. Similarly, the law does not apply to sending regular mail, but the recipient can request to be removed from the mailing list. What can be done? Sending spam without consent constitutes a criminal offense, and it also entitles the recipient to compensation without proof of damage of up to 1,000 NIS for each message sent without consent or after a request for removal. If the conditions are met, a class action lawsuit can be filed. What should you do? 1. Before signing up for a consumer club, locate the relevant clause and delete it. The same applies when joining through media; usually, there will be a consent for receiving promotional mail near the final confirmation, and by default the consent is given unless you remove the checkmark. Remember! Deleting it is your legal right! 2. If you have already signed up or don’t remember, send a message by registered mail, fax, or email, requesting removal from the mailing list and keep the documentation. 3. As mentioned, sending spam after you have refused to receive it entitles you to compensation without proof of damage of 1,000 NIS for each message. Make sure to document all the messages. If you want to exercise your rights, contact us today for further assistance.