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Summary:
Search Engines and Web Directories are
readily available sources for the promotion of bulk email mailing
lists, email address harvesting software, spamming services, and so
forth.
An important part of the anti spam fight is
for Search Engines and Web Directories to adopt and enforce policies
banning the indexing of spam-friendly or spam-promoting web sites.
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| Ref # |
Principle or Proposed Principle
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| SED001 |
Search Engines and Directories should
include, in their Terms of Service, a clause or clauses prohibiting the
listing of websites on their Search Engine or Directory where those
sites either:
- Sell, rent, swap, exchange or otherwise
trade email address lists;
- Offer services for the sending of bulk
email to unsolicited recipients (whether "targeted" or otherwise);
- Offer tools, software or devices for the
harvesting of email addresses from websites, newsgroups, or other
sources, or for the sending of bulk quantities of email to unsolicited
recipients;
- Offer "how to" style publications
(whether hard copy, audio or video tape, any computer file format, or
other medium) reasonably suspected as recommending or encouraging or
enabling email spamming or other email abuse;
- Or which promote other sites which do any
of the above.
Nothing within this principle shall be taken as precluding the listing
of services offering advertising within genuine opt-in mailing lists. |
| SED002 |
Search Engines and Directories should
maintain an adequately and competently staffed abuse desk on a 24 hour,
365 day per year basis. The abuse desk contact details should be
readily and easily accessible on the website of the Search Engine or
Directory, and also listed with the Network Abuse Clearinghouse at http://abuse.net |
| SED003 |
Upon receipt of an evidence-based abuse
report, the abuse desk of the Search Engine or Directory should
investigate the complaint and take action within two (2) hours. If the
complaint is valid, the listing should be removed ad barred
immediately. If the complaint cannot be properly investigated within
two (2) hours, the account should be temporarily removed while the
investigation continues. All complainants should be sent a reply
stating the outcome of the investigation and the action taken. |
| SED004 |
Search Engines and Directories should,
where users search for terms which are logical choices for spam-related
services, commence the search results with a reminder that spam-related
services are prohibited from listing on the particular Search Engine or
Directory, and requesting users to report any listing they find which
contravenes that policy. That request should include a form or email
address to make such reporting of offenders by users as easy as
possible. Such search terms should include (but not be limited to):
- spam
- bulk email
- bulk e-mail
- direct email
- direct e-mail
- email software
- e-mail software
- marketing
- bulk email software
- bulk e-mail software
- bulk email service
- bulk e-mail service
- email marketing
- e-mail marketing
- email advertising
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- e-mail advertising
- online advertising
- online marketing
- website promotion
- direct email
- direct e-mail
- email lists
- e-mail lists
- email address lists
- e-mail address lists
- stealth email
- stealth e-mail
- extractor
- extracter
- harvestor
- harvester
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| SED005 |
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| SED006 |
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| SED007 |
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| SED008 |
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| SED009 |
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| SED010 |
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| SED011 |
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| SED012 |
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