CAN-SPAM Act and Paragon Release 3



Paragon 3.6 Release Notice

For CAN-SPAM Compliance (E-mail Opt Out)

The purpose of this document is to define the CAN-SPAM Act of Congress, how Fidelity MLS Systems and Solutions meets the requirements of the Act with the Paragon 3.6 release, and what the responsibilities will be for the Paragon User and the MLS Board Staff.

The following is a high level overview of the sections of the document with interactive links directly to the respective sections of the document, which contain more detailed information. In addition to this documentation, Flash Demos will be included in the Paragon 3.6 release to help demonstrate the enhancements to Paragon due to the CAN-SPAM Act.

A. CAN-SPAM Overview

This section defines the CAN-SPAM Act of Congress, the penalties of violation and who is responsible for compliance.

B. How Paragon Meets The Requirements

This section gives an overview of the requirements and how Paragon meets each requirement.

C. Paragon User Responsibility

This section identifies the action that the end users (agents and others) need to take to meet the requirements which include:

1. Paragon User Email address verification

2. Honoring the opt out request

3. Helping the client opt back in

D. MLS/Board Admin Responsibilities

Describes the requirements for the MLS/Board Staff and the interaction between the staff and the Paragon user to include:

1. Entering the physical address for the Office of the Agent if blank

2. Following up with users on Unverified or Invalid status email addresses

3. Following up with users with blank email addresses if necessary

E. Contact/Prospect Experience (Opt Out/Opt In)

This section illustrates the experience for the contact/prospect/client and the steps for the Opt Out and Opt In processes.

F. Frequently Asked Questions

This section includes user/agent experience related questions and how the various aspects of the CAN-SPAM compliance work in Paragon.

A. CAN-SPAM Overview

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.

Violation of the CAN-SPAM Act can result in stiff penalties: liquidated damages of up to $250 per violation [that is, per email] with a damage cap of $2 million for non-willful acts and a cap of $6 million for conduct that is “willful and knowing” or when any of the aggravated violations is present. The CAN-SPAM Act also establishes criminal penalties of up to 5 years in prison for offenses such as falsifying header information, fraudulent representation, unauthorized access to and use of a computer for the purpose of transmitting multiple commercial email messages, and fraudulently relaying such messages.

The rules apply to any person initiating the email, either by sending the email directly or by directing another person or company to send the email on their behalf. Thus, these rules are applicable even if you [the Fidelity customer] outsource your email advertising to another company [Fidelity]. In such case, you are responsible for your vendors’ compliance with the requirements of the CAN-SPAM Act.

B. How Paragon Meets the Requirements

The following section defines each of the eight requirements of the CAN-SPAM Act followed by the Paragon solution for each condition.

1. Accurate Header and Sender Information

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.

Paragon Compliance:

The following information has been added to the X-header of outgoing emails from Paragon:

• “Paragon MLS Online”

• The IP address of the email server

• MLS ID

• User Name

• User ID

• Email ID

In order to properly validate that the correct E-mail ID is being sent in the X-header, the agent/user Email ID in Paragon will need to be verified. 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, the user’s email 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.

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2. Notice that the Email is an Advertisement

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.

Paragon Compliance:

The tag [ADV] will be appended to the beginning of the subject line of all outgoing emails. This tag meets the federal requirement.

3. Accurate Subject Line

The subject line cannot mislead the recipient about the contents or subject matter of the message.

Paragon Compliance:

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 “Real Estate Listing Notification For _______” to add clarity to the subject line of these emails.

4. Valid Postal Address

The message must include the sender’s valid physical business address to which the U.S. Postal Service delivers the sender’s mail.

Paragon Compliance:

The agent’s office postal address (not mailing address) has been added to the X-header of all outgoing emails. It is imperative that the physical addresses for offices are not blank in Paragon. If the address is blank and an agent from that office tries to send an email, they will receive an error message that the address is blank and that they need to contact their MLS/Board Admin to resolve the issue. In addition, an email will automatically be sent to the MLS informing them of the issue. Once the address has been added to Paragon, the agent will be able to send emails.

5. Notice of Right to Opt-Out of Future Emails

The message must inform the recipient of the right to opt out of receiving more commercial email from the sender’s company.

Paragon Compliance:

Fidelity has 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.

6. Opt-Out Mechanism

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.

Paragon Compliance:

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 will launch with opt-out options. After making their selection, a confirmation email is sent to the recipient containing a link to the Opt-In page in the event that the client has a change of heart or did not mean to opt out.

7. Honor the Opt-Out Request

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.

Paragon Compliance:

The opt-out request is immediate after the recipient makes their selection on the Opt-Out page and clicks the Update button. The Paragon user/agent is sent an e-mail notification that the user has opted out and Prospecting e-mail notifications to that user will be disabled.

8. Limit Your Message to the Fidelity Business You Represent

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.

Paragon Compliance:

This requirement does not apply to Paragon since Fidelity does not generate any emails that include reciprocal information about our parent company.

C. Paragon User Responsibility

Confirm “From” Email Address via Verification Email

Immediately following the 3.6 release, Paragon users will be required to verify the email address that has been set up for them in the Agent Record in Paragon. This will be accomplished with a feature that will send a one-time verification email to the email address set up in the Agent Record in Paragon by the MLS/Board Admin (or membership program). This email is triggered in Paragon when the agent (or user) sends their first email directly after the release.

Note: In addition to the first email after the release, any changes made to the agent email address in the Agent Record in Paragon will trigger the verification process.

The email will include a link that the user clicks on to verify that they are the owner of the email address. Users will have 30 days to complete the verification—during which time, they will be able to freely send emails from Paragon. On the 21st day, if the user has not responded to the email, an email will be sent to the MLS/Board indicating that the user has not responded so that the MLS can follow up with the agent to complete the process. On day 31, if the user still has not responded, they will be “blacklisted” and will be unable to send emails from Paragon. At this point, the MLS can trigger another verification email or change the email address in the Agent Record and trigger the verification email to resolve the issue.

Following is a process flow of the verification process:

First day after release OR if the MLS/Board changes agents email address in Agent Record any time after the release

On the 21st day, if the user has not clicked the verification link in the verification email

On the 31st day, if the user has not clicked the verification link in the verification email

In the final step, after the MLS has triggered the verification email, the end user has 72 hours to open the email and click on the verification link. During this 72 hour period, the user will NOT be able to send emails from Paragon.

If the Agent email status goes to INVALID, then the next time the agent clicks on the Compose or Email link, they will immediately receive the following error message:

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If the email is an auto-notification email from Prospecting, the agent will receive this message via email—no Prospecting emails will be sent while the verification status is INVALID.

Valid Postal Address

The CAN-SPAM requirement that the header include a valid postal address will affect all Paragon users in the following fashion:

If the physical address in the Office Record in Paragon for that user is blank (Street Name, City, State and Zip must contain data), the user will not be able to send any emails out of Paragon. If the user clicks on the Compose or Email link to send an email AND the physical address for the Office for which they are associate is blank, they will immediately receive the following error message:

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If the originating email is generated from the Prospecting module, this message will be sent to the agent in the form of an email.

In addition, an email will immediately be sent to the MLS/Board Admin notifying them that the address is blank and needs to be entered before any agent from that office can send emails.

Agent Notification of Client Opt Out

Every outgoing email from Paragon will include the following opt-out tag at the bottom of the email allowing the client to opt out of receiving future emails. This section will describe how the agent is notified if the client opts out and how it affects auto prospecting and manual emails.

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Agents will be notified via email when a client opts out of receiving emails. In addition, if there are any auto notification emails set up in prospecting from the respective agent for this client in prospecting, the auto notification will be turned off.

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When an auto notification is turned off, the status will change from “On” to “Opted Out” in the Listing Info and Email Notification tabs in the Contact Manager.

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Sending Emails to Opted Out Recipients

If an agent tries to send an email to a client who has opted out of receiving emails, the agent will receive the following error message after hitting the send button. If the client has opted out of receiving emails from the sending agent, only the sending agent will see this message. All other agents will be able to send the client emails from Paragon. If the client opted out of receiving emails from ALL Paragon Agents, then any agent who tries to send this client an email will receive the following error message:

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Client Opt In

If the client has had a change of heart or they opted out of receiving emails from ALL agents in Paragon and have hired a new agent who uses Paragon, there is a process to help the client opt back in.

The first step is to provide the client with the URL to the Opt In page for the agent’s MLS/Board. This can be located by attempting to send the client an email in Paragon and receiving the above error message. Then the agent needs to deliver the URL to the client (Paragon email is not an option since the client has opted out).

After the client receives and enters the URL into a browser to be taken to the Opt In page, they just need to follow the steps on the screens (See Opt-In Process).

Note: A double opt-in process is used, meaning that after the client makes their selection from the Opt In page, a confirmation email is sent to their email address. The client is not opted back in until they open the email and click a confirmation link.

[ADV] in Subject Line

While there is no action necessary by the agent with this change, it is worth repeating in this section. One of the CAN-SPAM requirements is that all commercial emails include a notice that the email is an advertisement (see Requirement #2). This is being met by adding [ADV] in the subject line of all outgoing emails. This is added at the point that the send button is clicked and cannot be removed from the email. By meeting this and ALL of the requirements of CAN-SPAM, the email will not be deleted by the most common e-mail providers. In addition, by meeting all of the requirements, it ensures that Fidelity (Paragon) will not be blacklisted, and agent emails will be delivered.

D. MLS/Board Admin Responsibilities

There are three pieces in the CAN-SPAM requirements that could generate communication to and action by the MLS/Board Admin:

1. Completing the office physical address

2. Following up with agents on unverified email addresses

3. Following up with agents who enter email addresses for the first time in Paragon

Complete Office Physical Address

The agent’s office physical address is added to the header of each outgoing email (this is not visible to the sender/receiver), to meet requirement #4, Valid Postal Address. If the physical address fields (the FIRST address fields for the Office) are blank in Paragon, the agent will receive an error message indicating that the address is blank. In addition, an email is sent to the MLS indicating that the address needs to be complete before the agent can send emails.

The MLS/Board Admin needs to enter the physical address for the respective office so that the agent (and any agent from that office for that matter) can immediately start sending emails.

Follow up with Agents on Unverified Email Addresses

Users have 30 days to click on the link in the verification email to complete the process. If on the 21st day, the agent has not completed the process, an email will be generated to the MLS indicating that the agent has not confirmed their address. From here, the MLS needs to check the email address in the agent record and contact the agent to verify the address.

If the address is correct and the agent doesn’t recall getting the email (or perhaps they deleted it) the MLS can click the Send Verification Email link next to the email address and another verification email will be sent.

If the address is not correct, the MLS/Board Admin needs to enter a new address, click Apply at the bottom of the agent record page in Paragon, reopen the record and click on the Send Verification Email link to trigger a new email.

Note: If the MLS does not trigger the verification email here, one will be triggered automatically the next time the agent tries to send an email in Paragon.

In either case, the agent should immediately access their email account, launch the email and click the link inside the email to complete the process. Following are examples of the various verification statuses and where they fall in the process:

Email address in agent record is blank

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Status after 3.6 release prior to the notification being triggered by agent or MLS/Board staff

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Status after notification has been sent to agent

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Status after 30 days expire and the agent had not clicked on the link in the verification email

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Status after MLS/Board Admin clicks “Send Verification Email” link after record goes to Invalid AND during the 72 hour period that agent had to complete process

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Status after the agent has verified his/her address by clicking on the link in the verification email

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Follow up with Agents on Blank Email Addresses

If an agent has a blank email address in Paragon and they try to send an email by clicking on the Compose or Email links, they will receive the following message window. In previous versions of Paragon, agents had a “Use one time” option with this window. That option has been eliminated with the CAN-SPAM Act.

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When the agent enters his/her email address in this window and clicks OK, an email will be generated to the MLS email address (this will be board specific for multiple board MLS’s) notifying them that the agent had entered an email address. No action necessarily has to take place by the MLS/Board since the verification email to the agent will be triggered when they send this current email that they are in the process of sending. However, the MLS/Board could use this notification to update any reciprocal membership systems or databases that they might be using to ensure that the Agent’s correct e-mail address is updated in the source database that contains the user’s correct e-mail address.

E. Contact/Prospect/Client Experience

The client will have the option to opt out of all future emails from Paragon. In addition, an opt-in process has been implemented in the event the client has a change of heart or did not intend to opt out of receiving emails from ALL agents in Paragon. The following describes the client experience for the opt-out and opt-in processes.

Client Opt Out Process

Every email generated by Paragon will include an opt-out link and URL that the client can click on or copy and paste into a browser to be taken to the opt-out page.

When the client clicks on the link (or pastes the URL into the address field of their browser), a new browser will launch at the following page:

After the recipient (client) makes their selection and clicks the Update button, they will receive a confirmation email. In the email will be a link back to the Opt In page in the event that they did not intend to opt out, or if they have a change of heart and want to opt back in.

Client Opt In Process

If the client changes their mind or wants to opt back in, they just need to click the link in the above email. They will be taken to the following Opt In page.

From this page, the client can opt back into receiving emails from a specific agent or from ALL Paragon agents.

After clicking the Next button, the client will receive a Thank You page with direction that an email has been sent to their email box and that they need to open the email and click on a final link to confirm the opt in request. This is known as a double opt-in process and protects clients from being opted in without their knowledge.

From the confirmation email, the client simply needs to click the “Click Here” link or paste the provided URL into a browser window to complete the process.

After clicking on the above link and receiving the final Thank You page, the client will be able to start receiving emails immediately from Paragon.

F. Frequently Asked Questions

Q I don’t understand why you are adding the opt-out function to my emails—I’m not sending SPAM.

A The CAN-SPAM Act applies to all commercial emails. Commercial emails are defined as “any email message whose primary purpose is to advertise or promote a commercial product or services, including website content.” In effect, any email that directs users to Paragon content and/or promotes listings for commercial purposes (such as prospecting emails and emails with listing views attached) fall into this category.

Q If [ADV] is added to the subject line of my emails, aren’t the emails automatically going to be deleted as SPAM?

A No. On the contrary, anti-spam software (such as SpamAssassin) looks at a number of variables such as appropriate headers, legitimate TO and FROM information, specific words in the subject line and body, and verifies if there is an Opt Out function. Points are accumulated for violations or lack of these variables. Once emails reach a certain point level, they are deemed SPAM and the emailer is added to a blacklist—effectively turning off the ability for the emailer (Fidelity) to send emails through the email service provider.

In the worst case, online providers (such as MSN or Hotmail) might put the email in a Junk Folder and prompt the recipient to click a “Yes, this is Junk Mail” or “No, this is not Junk Mail” button, which allows future emails from the sender to land in the recipient’s inbox.

Q If I don’t receive or reply to the Agent Email Address Verification Message and my ability to email is turned off, how do I get set back up so I can send emails from Paragon?

A Contact your MLS/Board administrator. They can confirm your email address in Paragon and they have the ability to resend the verification email to complete the process. Once you have clicked on the link in the email message, you will immediately be able to start sending emails from Paragon.

Q My client opted out last week but since then has had a change of heart. How can I help them opt back in?

A Simply draft an email to them from Paragon. When you try to send it you will receive an error message that the email could not be sent. In the body of the message will be a URL for an Opt In process that you can copy and give to the client. Once the client completes the Opt In process, you can immediately start sending emails to them.

Q From the previous question and answer, if I have the URL to the Opt-In process, can I opt my client back in?

A No. Fidelity utilizes a double-opt in process, which means that a verification email is sent to the person requesting to be opted back into receiving emails. Plus, if the client really does not want to be opted back in and you start the process, you could be in violation of the CAN-SPAM Act.

Q When my client opts back in, will I be notified by the process?

A No—you will need to have your client contact you once they have completed the final step of clicking on the link in the Opt-In Confirmation Email. Or, simply try to send an email to the client, if it goes through without returning the message that the client has opted out, then you will know that they have completed the opt in.

Q If I have auto prospecting set up for the client, and they opt out, what happens?

A A process will automatically disable the auto prospect email feature for that client.

Q I have an auto prospecting search where I send the results to multiple recipients. Will that auto-notification be disabled if one of the recipients opt-out?

A No, if there are multiple recipients attached to an auto-prospecting email, the automatic email function will continue. The only difference is that the record of the email will include a message that the recipient (email address) has opted out and as a result, the email was not delivered to that recipient. Plus, you will receive the notification email that the client had opted out.

Q How soon will the client be opted out after making their selection on the Opt-Out page and clicking the Update button?

A Immediately.

Q Does the opt-out period expire?

A No, the client will no longer be able to receive emails until they either opt back in or change their email address, since the opt-out is attached to the recipient’s email address.

Q Can I send emails to my client again if they change their email address?

A The functionality in Paragon is attached to the recipient’s email address and not the recipient’s name. So, technically, you can send emails to the client. Legally, however, you should probably not send them emails since they opted out of receiving emails from you. You could be in violation of the CAN-SPAM Act if you do so.

Q Can I send the client emails from Outlook?

A The opt-out function only turns off the ability to email from within Paragon. However, if your client has opted out of receiving emails specifically from you, and you attempt to send any type of solicitation email from Outlook, you could possibly be in violation of the CAN-SPAM Act.

Q What happens if a client decides to opt out of receiving emails from ALL agents in Paragon, and they have auto prospecting searches set up with more than one agent? Will all of the auto prospecting emails be turned off?

A No, there currently is no functionality to search the entire database for multiple agents with multiple auto emails set up in prospecting. However, agents with auto prospecting set up for this user will receive the email error message that the client had opted out when the next prospecting email to the client is triggered in Paragon.

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The recipient has the option of opting out from the sending agent or from ALL agents using Paragon

Page defaults to “Please do not make any changes”

Option to opt back in—in the event that the recipient did not intend to opt out or they have a change of heart and decide they want to receive emails.

Opt out option at the bottom of the email

The client enters their email address and clicks the Next button

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