On the heels of issuing its first Notice of Violation under Canada’s Anti-spam Legislation (CASL) earlier this month, the Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission (CRTC) announced today that Plentyoffish Media Inc., the company behind the online dating website PlentyofFish.com, has entered into an undertaking with the agency and paid a $48,000 fine for alleged violations of CASL.
Complaints alleging that the company sent emails regarding PlentyofFish.com services to registered users that did not include a clear and prominent unsubscribe mechanism that could be readily performed prompted an investigation by the CRTC.
In contrast to the scenario in the CRTC’s most recent public CASL enforcement effort against an alleged spammer that “flagrantly violated” CASL and resulted in a Notice of Violation and a fine of $1.1 million, upon being notified of the investigation, Plentyoffish sought to cooperate and comply with CASL. In response to the investigation, Plentyoffish brought its unsubscribe practices in line with CASL requirements (thus saving users from one frustration in the already exasperating world of online dating).
The company has also entered into a voluntary undertaking with the CRTC. This involves the payment of the $48,000 fine and the development and implementation of a CASL compliance program including policies and procedures, as well as employee training and education.
In our CASL update earlier this month, we had noted that there are likely more enforcement actions on the horizon. This CASL enforcement announcement just weeks later indicates that the CRTC is getting plenty of bites.
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