On July 1, 2017, a private right of action in connection with Canada’s anti-spam legislation comes into force. The consequence of this? In addition to having to answer to government regulators for breaches of the law, companies will then have to answer to Canadians who receive electronic messages or automatic software updates and data transfers in contravention of the anti-spam legislation.
This opens up the possibility of
class actions relating to breaches of the anti-spam legislation.
Canadian anti-spam legislation has been enacted in stages. Initially, in 2014, portions of the legislation came into force governing commercial electronic messages. Canadians’ permission was being requested before companies would continue to send emails. Then in 2015, the portion of the legislation attempting to block companies from installing programs on computers without users’ consent came into force. Having had time to adjust to these legislative requirements, companies will soon have to step up their compliance efforts if they want to ward off class actions from individuals who’ve been the subject of anti-spam legislation breaches.
If you believe you have been affected by an act or omission that constitutes a contravention of Canada’s anti-spam legislation,
contact Wagners to discuss your situation further.
