Look carefully at the email you receive over the next few days. ...

[Frost2351]

Look carefully at the email you receive over the next few days. Are any of the emails advertisements for a commercial product or service that violate the CAN-SPAM Act? If so, what can you do to stop receiving such email in the future?

Question 2

Why must U.S. organizations be very careful when dealing with issues relating to pornography in the workplace? What are some legal and reasonable steps an organization can take to limit pornography in the workplace?

[matt95]

Answer to Question 1

You will find that some of the emails violate the Controlling the Assault of Non-Solicited Pornography and Marketing (CAN-SPAM) Act. The CAN-SPAM Act specifies requirements that commercial emailers must follow when sending messages that have a primary purpose to advertise or promote a commercial product or service. The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) is charged with enforcing the CAN-SPAM Act, and the agency maintains a consumer complaint database relating to the law. Consumers can submit complaints online at www.ftc.gov or forward email to the FTC at spamuse.gov. In order to stop receiving emails that violate the CAN-SPAM Act, students can also send or submit their complaints at these sites.

Answer to Question 2

By providing computers, Internet access, and training in how to use those computers and the Internet, companies could be seen by the law as purveyors of pornography because they have enabled employees to store pornographic material and retrieve it on demand. In addition, if an employee sees a coworker viewing porn on a workplace computer, that employee may be able to claim that the company has created a hostile work environment. Such a claim opens the organization to a sexual harassment lawsuit that can cost hundreds of thousands of dollars and tie up managers and executives in endless depositions and court appearances.

Reasonable steps that an organization can take to limit pornography in the workplace include establishing and communicating an acceptable use policy that prohibits access to pornography sites, identifying those who violate the policy, and taking disciplinary action against those who violate the policy, up to and including termination.