Sexually Explicit Emails Require Labels, Says FTC

Pornographic emails, simply known as “spam” in the Internet community, must now carry a subject line reading “Sexually Explicit Content,” announced the Federal Trade Commission this week. Furthermore, the actual messages must not contain any graphic material.

When Congress passed the CAN-SPAM Act late last year, its hope was to eradicate unsolicited email; pornography was certainly one of its main targets. And according to a Reuters report, a recent FTC study found that “17 percent of pornographic offers contained images of nudity that appeared whether a recipient wanted to see them or not.”

So leave it to the FTC to take on a parental role. Not only does it demand that pornographers include a postal address with an accompanying “opt-out” option in the email message, but it bans them from including any sexually explicit pictures, as well. It’s the “electronic equivalent of a ‘brown paper wrapper,’”the FTC commented to internetnews.com.

“This ‘brown paper wrapper’ would be what a recipient would initially see when opening a message containing sexually oriented material.”

Although various states have their own laws regarding sexually explicit spam–some require an “ADV:ADULT” label or something comparable–the new federal standard will override them. The FTC found the “adult” tag to be rather vague because topics like gambling or smoking could be considered “adult” as well.

“Lots of things are appropriate for adults that aren’t appropriate for children,” stated FTC assistant director, Allen Hile, to Reuters.

Currently only a proposal, the “CAN-Porno” directive will soon be available for viewing in the Federal Register. The response period will end on February 17.

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