Maryland Spam Deterrence Act
 

WASHINGTON (Reuters) -- Internet "spam" purveyors who hide behind false e-mail addresses could face up to 10 years in jail and fines of $25,000 per day under a new state law signed Wednesday by Maryland Governor Robert Ehrlich.

The Maryland Spam Deterrence Act allows state officials to arrest and fine those who engage in a variety of deceptive tactics to send junk e-mail.

The law was hailed as the nation's toughest by Internet provider America Online, which has helped officials in other states track down spammers who send out fraudulent messages. America Online is a unit of Time Warner Inc., as is CNN.

But one anti-spam activist said it would do little to stop the unsolicited bulk messages that now account for up to 83 percent of all e-mail, because most of those already violate anti-fraud laws.

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