Regulating Spam in Hong Kong and Malaysia: Lessons From Other Jurisdictions.

The Internet has evolved from the days of mere academic and research network to a tool of modern communication. The Internet offers unlimited potential business opportunities. It has enabled commercial transactions to be inexpensively transacted on a global basis with ease and convenience. 'Information kiosks' (websites) providing information on the latest and trendiest products and services at the most competitive price are easily accessible to anyone with a computer connected to the network. The interactive nature of the Internet also allows for business communication and transactions to be effectively concluded without the physical presence of either contracting parties. In fact, the single most apparent indication of the Internet's impact on the commercial world is the highest number of registration in the domain name '.com.' It is said that advertising concerns 'effective customer communication of a company's product (service)'. The marketing and promotion of one's products and services has always been an integral part of business and is seen as an increasing business expense. Advertisements started to appear as part of Internet services mainly as banners in websites accessed to by Internet users and these were generally accepted by them. However, it has become commonplace for users to receive directly via the e-mail, product and service information from companies and individuals. The nature of the Internet allows these e-mail messages to be sent to millions of users, anytime, anywhere within seconds. What annoys users, however, is the frequency and the volume of such advertisements. The problem of spamming persists and is expected to swell exponentially as it is not until recently that governments have taken a 'hands on' stand to spamming. This article intends to look at the menace of spamming and the shortcomings of the various legislations which have recently been promulgated in Australia, the United States and the United Kingdom in an attempt to address the issue. Firstly, the article explains what is spam and how it affects the Internet community and the Internet as a whole. Secondly, it looks at the varied responses of the Internet community and possible causes of action that have arisen to deal with spam. Thirdly, the article examines whether the legislations recently enacted have addressed the elements that represent the problem of spamming such as the identification of the sender of a spam message and the issue of bulk messaging. Bulk messaging is an important element in the regulation of spam as it is the volume of such e-messages sent that is the core of the matter. Fourthly, it evaluates various measures such as opt in/opt out mechanism adopted by Australia, the United States and the United Kingdom and the effectiveness of such measures in their attempt to stop spam in its tracks. Fifthly, the article examines the position in Hong Kong and Malaysia with respect to the deficiencies in the common law and the existing legislation in facing the challenge of 21st century junk mail. Finally, the article proposes that only a global solution to a global problem is an appropriate and adequate measure in any attempt to regulate spam. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]