WEB HOST INDUSTRY REVIEW) -- US federal regulators have accused seven companies of hiring others to send illegal emails containing pornographic content in an effort to lure consumers to adult Web sites. The government says four of the firms already agreed to pay nearly $1.2 million to settle the charges, solidifying these as some of the largest government crackdowns on pornographic email operations.
The process, described as "electronic flashing," resulted in some of the unwanted emails being sent to children. The FTC said the messages were not prominently marked "sexually explicit," did not specify how customers could block future emails and did not include a postal address - all required under federal law.
The FTC was informed by consumers who complained about receiving the pornographic emails and forwarded copies of the disturbing messages to a special FTC email address.
The seven companies did not send emails directly to consumers but through affiliate programs, paying others to send the messages to drive traffic to adult Web sites. Under the "Can Spam" law, defendants in such cases were liable because they paid others to send emails on their behalf.
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