With all due respect to Rep Styler and Attorney General Mark Shurtliff, this bill shows a remarkable cluelessness regarding the differences between telemarketers and SPAMMERS. I’ve never, to my knowledge, received a telemarketed solicitation that didn’t involve an established company operating within the US. Almost every SPAM I receive is from a small, fly-by-night operation or, even worse, from overseas. These guys will just thumb their noses at this bill and the penalties involved and continue what they’re doing.

I can sympathize with Styler and Shurtliff—they have constituents who want action and they want it now. So, they’ll pass this bill, everyone will pat themselves on the back and congratulate themselves on “protecting Utah’s children” and the problem will continue unabated.

The truth of the matter is, that unlike many things, SPAM really is a technology problem. The problem is that there is no easy way to tell that a particular email came from the user who claimed to send it. That’s a fundamental flaw leftover from the days when the Internet was a big collegial party (pre-1994). The problem will be solved if email is to be useful, but laws like this one are a waste of time and money.

For some ideas on possible technology-based solutions to SPAM, see the following:

• Using Identity to Fight Spam
• The Dark Side of Digital identity
• Making SPAMMERS Pay