This legislation will be in force September 2011, and we should start seeing a noticeable reduction in spam originating from Canada fairly soon after it comes into play. When Austra-lia passed similar legislation in 2004, it dropped out of the top 10 list for countries producing spam. Unfortunately, the results weren’t the same for our friends south of the border; the U.S. is battling for that top position. HOW DOES THIS LEGISLATION AFFECT YOu? Bill C-28 is technology neutral in its approach, and covers more than just e-mail to computers. It will encompass all forms of commercial electronic messages, including text mes-sages or cellphone spam, sound, voice or image messages. If you send bulk e-mail to your patients – or prospective pa-tients – such as events, newsletters, office closures and special workshops, this legislation may affect you. Here are five easy ways to protect yourself and your business: 1. All outgoing messages must include information that clearly identifies the person who sent the message. Make sure your e-mail includes your company name, con-tact information, address and phone number. A spam mes-sage will never have a phone number – if and when they list a phone number and address, a simple search will reveal to you that it’s counterfeit. Not only does offering your full, legitimate contact information give your e-mail credibility but also it allows recipients to contact you via other means besides e-mail. 2. The message must include information that allows the recipient to readily contact the actual sender, and not just the organization or business. If a chiropractic assistant (CA) is sending a message on behalf of the doctor or clinic, the CA needs to include her contact information at the clinic. In other words, someone in the orga-nization must be a liaison who can be directly contacted. Make sure to include the company name, website and the name and position of the individual sending the message. 3. The sender must offer an electronic address or link on the web that will allow the recipient of the e-mail to unsubscribe. Allow the client or patient the ability to unsubscribe and make it easy – don’t hide the unsubscribe button. Have that unsub-scribe button go to a web page were they can confirm they no longer wish to receive communication from your clinic. Once a recipient has unsubscribed, you should receive a courteous and simple “thank-you” to confirm the unsubscrip-tion. You then have 10 days to cease all communications with that individual. The recipient must be provided with an alter-native method to communicate with you their desire to be tak-en off your list, in case the unsubscribe button does not work for the recipient. In most cases, they should be able to reply to the e-mail and simply request to be removed. Additional provisions need to be in place for the individual to unsubscribe for up to 60 days following the electronic com-munication. If you have a phone number on the e-mail cor-respondence, or they can reply back to the e-mail, that gives them plenty of opportunity to unsubscribe. 34 • Canadian ChiropraCtor | JULY/aUGUSt 2011 4. Provide a double opt-in to prevent individuals from counterfeiting information. There are a host of good companies that have double opt-ins built into their system. I’m sure most people have double-opted-in at some point in time and didn’t even realize it. This is how it works: someone visits your website and wants to receive your video series on health and wellness. They input their e-mail address into your system and are told to go check their inbox for a message. The individual then goes to their inbox to find a message from you to confirm their e-mail ad-dress by clicking a link that leads them back into your website. This prevents someone from using your e-mail to sign up for a service on your behalf (fraud). If you’re setting up your list for the first time and have your patients’ e-mails, it’s a good idea to input them into the system and it will generate a double opt-in for all your patients. This is a good way to see who is interested in receiving your newsletter or your automated videos on health and wellness. MOST IMPORTANT TO REMEMBER! The rules of Bill-C28 stipulate that you must receive express consent, or implied consent, prior to sending commercial elec-tronic messages. The federal government will be issuing detailed regulations and related materials to support implementation of the law, and these are expected to better describe acceptable methods of ob-taining express consent. However, organizations following cur-rent best practices and guidelines can expect that their consents will be compliant with the new law and, in the end, attaining “express consent” is rather straighforward and can be put into place quite easily. However, ‘implied consent’ is a bit murkier. SOME EXAMPLES OF IMPLIED CONSENT If you have an existing relationship with a patient, you have their implied consent , meaning they are OK with receiving com-munication from you. (But relationships with patients come and go – to protect yourself when continuing to communicate with them if they leave the practice, a double opt-in with the option to unsubscribe is important to ensure you continue to have their consent when they’re gone.) There is a transition or “grandfather” clause for businesses with existing relationships prior to the Act coming into force. The government does understand that some small businesses do not have the technology to implement sophisticated auto-mated opt-in systems with their email lists. What about renting e-mail lists in your area to promote products and services? This bill won’t stop you from renting lists. It will require the individuals compiling the list to comply with the rules of con-sent and other federal and provincial privacy laws such as the Personal Information Protection and Electronic Documents Act (PIPEDA). Building your own list with existing relationships is, by far, the best strategy. If you do communicate with your patients via e-mail, and you have concerns about whether you are doing this in accor-dance with the new regulations, I would highly recommend you contact a chiropractic e-mail service provider to ensure your systems comply with the rules and to help you readjust your practices if they do not. • www.canadianchiropractor.ca
Chiropractic + Naturopathic Doctor July/August 2011: Page 34
