(3 February 2010 – Australia) Australia’s largest discount stockbroking firm, operated by the Commonwealth Bank of Australia, CommSec has been fined A$55,000 for sending out spam.The Australian Communications and Media Authority (ACMA) initiated an investigation after receiving complaints from consumers about the firms email policy.
Customers were repeatedly being sent commercial emails by CommSec even after withdrawing their consent.
As a result of the investigation ACMA recognised three email campaigns last year that did not provide recipients an option to unsubscribe, thus breaching the spam act.
Chris Chapman, chairman, ACMA, said that CommSec has undertaken to initiate stringent reviews of its systems and processes as a result of this investigation, and has demonstrated a commitment to making the internal changes necessary for ongoing compliance with the Spam Act.
As a further result to the investigation, ACMA has said that an independent consultant will be appointed to assess the firm’s system reviews, quarterly audits of CommSec’s email campaigns for the next 12 months and the introduction of an annual training program.