By: (AP) Senders of junk e-mail would face up to a decade in prison and fines as high as $25,000 under a stiff anti-spam bill approved by Maryland lawmakers.
The bill, approved late Monday in the final hours of the General Assembly, would make it illegal for people who send unsolicited e-mail to disguise their identities by using false return addresses or misleading subject lines.
It also would prohibit spammers from harvesting addresses from Web sites and allows authorities to seize spammers' personal assets.
Criminal penalties would be based on how many mailings were sent. The bill empowers state officials to prosecute spammers even if they live outside Maryland.
The bill's sponsor, Delegate Neil Quinter, said he patterned it after a federal law signed by President Bush in December and a Virginia law enacted a year ago. Quinter said he and Senate sponsor Rob Garagiola conferred with lawmakers working on similar legislation in Minnesota, New Jersey and Ohio.
It now heads to Gov. Robert Ehrlich.
Gregg Massoni, Ehrlich's press secretary, said the governor will decide whether to sign it after his policy advisers and the state attorney general's office determine whether there are any legal problems with the legislation.
The governor wants to ensure that the bill would not harm legitimate businesses, Massoni said.
Comments
No comments on this item Please log in to comment by clicking here