Europeans say NO to Eurospam!

Europeans opposed to unsolicited commercial e-mail ("spam") now have
their own voice, thanks to the European Coalition Against Unsolicited
Commercial E-Mail (EuroCAUCE).

Founded with the assistance of the U.S.-based Coalition Against
Unsolicited Commercial E-Mail (CAUCE, www.cauce.org), EuroCAUCE will
engage in the same type of advocacy on behalf of Internet users and
network owners that made CAUCE the world's largest Internet-based
advocacy organisation.

"Free expression and the right to be left alone are both enshrined in
the European Convention of Human Rights," points out EuroCAUCE's
pro-tempore chair, George Mills. "These are the founding principles
of the European Union (EU), and are guiding principles to all
countries who are members of the Council of Europe. We are working
entirely 'with the grain' on this matter."

More than 95% of unsolicited commercial e-mail (UCE) is from the
United States, but the quantity of European-origin UCE is increasing.
Should legislation in the United States curtail UCE, then the
visibility of the European variety could increase dramatically.
"We need to ensure that a global approach to UCE is achieved as the
international community draws closer through use of the Internet,"
Mills explained.

EU Directives concerning Data Protection and Telecommunications and
Distance Selling are being enacted, leading to questions about whether
the EU will regulate UCE. These Directives guide the enactment or
amendment of national legislation concerning various aspects of
consumer contact, which could include UCE. Countries which are not
members of the EU also may follow the EU's lead in this matter,
especially as the problems caused by junk e-mail become more
widespread.

The picture is by no means uniform: some countries will prohibit UCE
outright, others will implement state-backed 'opt-out' schemes. "We
at EuroCAUCE would prefer to see 'opt-in' schemes implemented," said
Mills.

Further information can be found at the EuroCAUCE website,
http://www.euro.cauce.org