In response to the increase in the amount of unsolicited commercial email or "spam", Congress enacted the Controlling the Assault of Non-Solicited Pornography and Marketing Act of 2003, better known as the "CAN-SPAM Act". The CAN-SPAM Act became effective on January 1, 2004 and applies broadly to all commercial email messages, not just the unsolicited advertising that most people think of as spam. The CAN-SPAM Act does not ban spam but instead sets forth requirements for the transmission of any commercial email, including newsletters and wireless messaging.
Following are the requirements for commercial emails with descriptions of how enhancements to the Paragon™ system fulfill these requirements.
Accurate Header and Sender Information Notice that the Email is an Advertisement Accurate Subject Line Valid Postal Address Notice of Right to Opt-Out of Future Emails Opt-Out Mechanism Honor the Opt-Out Request Limit Your Message to the Fidelity Business You Represent
The "To" and "From" and routing information, including the originating domain name and email address, must be accurate and you must accurately identify the person who initiated the email. You do not have to identify the sender by name but instead can accurately reflect the sender’s title or department.
The following information has been added to the X-header of outgoing emails from Paragon™: Paragon™ MLS Online The name of the originating server Mulitple Listing Service (MLS) ID User Name User ID Email ID In addition, agent email addresses in Paragon™ will be verified to ensure that the “From” address is correct. This will occur the first time an agent sends an email from Paragon™. An email will be triggered to the “From” address (the agent’s email address). The email will contain verbiage for the agent to confirm their email address by clicking on a link inside the body of the email. The agent will have 30 days to complete this process. Once the verification is complete, their address will be added to a “whitelist” of approved email addresses. If the email is not confirmed, the address will be placed on a “blacklist” on the 31st day and the agent will no longer be able to send emails from Paragon™.
The following information has been added to the X-header of outgoing emails from Paragon™:
In addition, agent email addresses in Paragon™ will be verified to ensure that the “From” address is correct. This will occur the first time an agent sends an email from Paragon™. An email will be triggered to the “From” address (the agent’s email address). The email will contain verbiage for the agent to confirm their email address by clicking on a link inside the body of the email. The agent will have 30 days to complete this process. Once the verification is complete, their address will be added to a “whitelist” of approved email addresses. If the email is not confirmed, the address will be placed on a “blacklist” on the 31st day and the agent will no longer be able to send emails from Paragon™.
The message must contain a clear and conspicuous notice that it is an advertisement or solicitation. You are no longer required by law to put the notice in the subject line but should put the notice in the beginning of the email if it is not in the subject line.
The following tag has been prepended to the subject line: [ADV]. This tag meets the federal requirement.
The subject line cannot mislead the recipient about the contents or subject matter of the message.
While we cannot control what an agent types into the subject line, the [ADV] tag will resolve most issues. In addition, we have changed the text in the automatic prospecting emails from “Automatic E-mail Notification For ______” to read “[ADV] Real Estate Listing Notification For _______” to add clarity to the subject line of these emails.
The message must include the sender’s valid physical business address to which the U.S. Postal Service delivers the sender’s mail.
The agent’s office physical address has been added to the X-header of all outgoing emails. It is imperative that the mailing addresses for offices are not empty in Paragon™. If this occurs, the agent and MLS will receive an automated email informing them that the outgoing email could not be sent since the office address for the agent is blank. Once the address has been added to Paragon™, the agent will be able to send emails. Note: If the office address is blank in Paragon™, NO agent from that office will be able to send emails. While these fields are not required fields, it is now very important for the MLS Admin to complete this information.
The message must inform the recipient of the right to opt out of receiving more commercial email from the sender’s company.
We have added the following tag to the bottom of every outgoing email from Paragon™: "If you prefer not to receive real estate listing information and updates via e-mail, click here." Clicking on the link will take the recipient to a web page where they can opt out of receiving emails from the specific agent or any emails from the Paragon™ system.
The message must provide a return email address or another Internet-based response mechanism that allows a recipient to ask the sender not to send future email messages to that email address. The opt-out mechanism must be able to process opt-out requests for at least 30 days after the date that the email was sent. You may create a “menu” of choices to allow a recipient to opt-out of certain types of messages, but you must also include the option to end all commercial messages from the sender. You cannot require the recipient to provide any information other than the relevant email address and opt-out preference, or take any steps other than sending a reply email message or visiting a single Internet web page.
Fidelity Real Estate Solutions has implemented a website for opting out of emails from the agent or from all of Paragon™. After clicking on an opt-out link in the email, a new browser window launches with the options to select from. After making their selection, a confirmation email is sent to the recipient to ensure that they are requestor. The recipient clicks a link in the email and a new browser is launched containing a "Thank you, your preferences have been updated" message.
After receipt of an opt-out request, the law currently gives the sender 10 business days to stop sending commercial email to the requestor’s email address. However, the Federal Trade Commission is currently considering shortening the requirement to 3 business days.
The opt-out request is immediate upon the final email confirmation by the recipient.
Your email should limit its message to the particular Fidelity company and business line that you represent and not speak for the parent corporation or any other divisions, affiliates or lines of business.
This requirement does not apply to Paragon™ since Fidelity does not generate any emails that include reciprocal information about our parent company.For more information about the CAN-SPAM act, visit the following section on the Federal Trade Commission’s website: The CAN-SPAM Act: Requirements for Commercial Emailers. Click here for the pdf version.
This requirement does not apply to Paragon™ since Fidelity does not generate any emails that include reciprocal information about our parent company.
For more information about the CAN-SPAM act, visit the following section on the Federal Trade Commission’s website: The CAN-SPAM Act: Requirements for Commercial Emailers. Click here for the pdf version.