A well-known provider of compliance services located in Texas recently wrote an article titled Mobile App Advertising and CAN-SPAM. They dig into the definition of “electronic mail address” and state that the frequent use of the word “commonly” in the definition indicates that an email address is simply an example and not the only type of electronic mail address that is possible. They argue other points and also state that an overzealous auditor or examiner could consider the CAN-SPAM Act’s broad definition of “electronic mail address” to encompass many modern technologies, including mobile apps.

Are any banks experiencing issues with examiners or auditors claiming that the CAN-SPAM applies to mobile apps? They article states that, to protect against any criticism, financial institutions could include the physical address, a footer to indicate banners within the app are ads, and a way to opt out of seeing ads.

We don’t advertise on our mobile app but I find this article a little disturbing. It seems like a stretch to try to apply this old Act to new technologies.