OTTAWA-GATINEAU – The CRTC and the U.S. Federal Trade Commission (FTC) are teaming up to eradicate unsolicited telecommunications, unsolicited commercial electronic messages (spam) and other unlawful electronic threats
The new memorandum of understanding (MOU), signed by CRTC chairman and CEO Jean-Pierre Blais and FTC chairwoman Edith Ramirez, incorporates and solidifies the two Commission’s commitment to cooperate on enforcing Canadian and U.S. spam and telemarketing laws. It also details plans that will see both organizations share knowledge and expertise through research, training programs and staff exchanges, and promises to keep each other informed on developments related to the laws, among other activities.
“Unlawful spam and unsolicited telecommunications can undermine Canadians’ confidence in the communication systems on which they rely”, said Blais in a statement late Thursday. “This MOU will strengthen our efforts to protect those systems and their users, and to deter spammers and telemarketers who do not respect the relevant laws and rules in place. Working closely with international partners, such as the FTC, increases our effectiveness in reducing spam and unsolicited telemarketing, for the benefit of Canadians.”
The MOU underscores the longstanding cooperation between the FTC and CRTC. Both organizations serve on the executive committee of the London Action Plan, a network of international spam and unsolicited communications enforcement agencies. They also work together on investigations related to automated dialing announcing device calls (a.k.a. robocalls).
