Can the e-mail spam.

Byline: The Register-Guard

As any computer user can attest - and attest, and attest, and attest - unsolicited e-mail messages are overwhelming the Internet. These messages, peddling everything from pharmaceuticals to pornography, have become a plague of modern life. But maybe for not much longer, or to the same degree.

The Oregon House took the first step last week toward restricting unwanted e-mail, or spam, by passing - unanimously, no less - House Bill 2737. The measure was co-sponsored by Reps. Jeff Merkley, D-Portland; Mark Hass, D-Portland, and Betsy Close, R-Albany.

The bill, which now goes to the Senate, would outlaw unsolicited e-mail messages that advertise for goods or services unless such messages are clearly identified as advertisements. Senders would be required to place the letters ADV (for advertising) in the e-mail subject line, allowing e-mail filters to block such messages.

The bill would specifically outlaw e-mail subject lines with false or misleading information. Recipients of such e-mails would be permitted to sue the sender for $500 in damages, or for $10 for advertising e-mails that didn't carry the ADV designation in the subject line.

Those amounts might not seem like a lot, but for two reasons, many senders would hesitate to send unsolicited or misleading advertising e-mail. First, the bill makes each offending message a separate offense, meaning that one recipient of numerous messages could seek $500 in damages for each one. Second, if large numbers of irate recipients joined in a class action lawsuit, the sender could be subject to huge financial penalties. Self-interest alone would cause senders to cut back on the messages.

Spam would not vanish after the approval of HB 2737 - a lot of it is generated offshore, by hard-to-trace senders or by people who are otherwise beyond the easy reach of enforcement efforts. But any reduction in the torrent would be welcome, as would greater standardization of e-mail advertising to include clear identification in the subject line.

Merkley, the bill's chief sponsor, says further limitation on spam could occur if the measure's penalties led to the development of programs allowing users to centralize information on illegal e-mails so that it could more easily be referred to the appropriate law enforcement authorities.

HB 2737 approaches spam from the angle that advertisers should be up-front about their e-mail messages. That way, recipients could decide for themselves what to delete. HB 2737 represents a responsible way to control spam by putting the burden of truthful identification on the sender. The Senate should pass the bill and send it to Gov. Ted Kulongoski for his signature.