The Australian Communications and Media Authority (ACMA) has issued two formal warnings for non-compliance with the Spam Act 2003.
The two organisations in question, Premier Auto Wholesale and Home Loan Selection Services, have both been warned after sending marketing messages without the consent of recipients.
The investigation by ACMA found Premier Auto Wholesale sent SMS messages illegally, with mobile numbers having been obtained from online advertisements for used cars.
“The ACMA found that the numbers in the advertisements were accompanied with a statement that marketing messages were not welcome,” a statement from the ACMA read.
The second offender, Home Loan Selection Services, failed to demonstrate its consent to send emails promoting its business.
ACMA chairman Chris Chapman said both cases breached the Spam Act 2003 and demonstrated why online marketers need to be aware of their responsibilities when it comes to email addresses or telephone numbers.
“E-marketers need to understand that the publication of an email address or mobile telephone number on a website is not an open invitation to send messages,” Chapman said in a statement.
The warnings come as Virgin Blue Holdings was fined $110,000 by the ACMA and announced its intention to overhaul its email marketing system last month after customers complained of not being able to unsubscribe from the airline's mailing list.
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