Email Compliance

Understand anti-spam laws (CAN-SPAM, GDPR) and ensure your campaigns are compliant. Violating these laws can result in massive fines and account suspension.

Why Compliance Matters

Non-compliance risks:

  • Fines: Up to $50,120 per violation (CAN-SPAM), €20M or 4% revenue (GDPR)
  • Account suspension: Email providers will ban you
  • Blacklisting: Your domain/IP gets flagged, destroying deliverability
  • Legal action: Recipients can sue for damages
  • Reputation damage: Permanent harm to your brand

CAN-SPAM Act (USA)

Applies to all commercial emails sent to US recipients.

Key Requirements

1. Accurate Header Information

  • "From" name and email must be accurate
  • Must match who you actually are
  • No misleading routing information

2. Honest Subject Lines

  • Subject must reflect email content
  • No deceptive subject lines to trick opens
  • Example: Don't use "Re:" if it's not a reply

3. Clear Advertisement Label

  • Must identify message as an ad
  • B2B cold emails generally exempt if personalized and relevant
  • When in doubt, include "This is a promotional email"

4. Include Physical Address

  • Valid postal address in footer
  • Can be P.O. box, street address, or registered agent
  • Must be current and monitored

5. Honor Opt-Out Requests

  • Must have unsubscribe link
  • Must process opt-outs within 10 business days
  • Cannot charge a fee or require more than email address
  • Cannot sell/transfer email addresses of people who opt out

6. Monitor Third Parties

  • You're responsible for compliance even if someone else sends for you
  • Monitor your partners/agencies sending on your behalf

CAN-SPAM-Compliant Email Template

Hi {{first_name}},

[Your personalized email content here]

Best,
Your Name
Your Company

------
You're receiving this because [reason - e.g., you attended our webinar,
we found you on LinkedIn, etc.]

Unsubscribe: [link]

Your Company Name
123 Business St, San Francisco, CA 94102

GDPR (European Union)

Applies to all emails sent to EU residents, regardless of where you're based.

Key Requirements

1. Lawful Basis for Processing

You need one of these:

  • Consent: Explicit opt-in (checkbox, not pre-checked)
  • Legitimate Interest: Business reason + recipient's rights balanced
  • Contract: Necessary for contract performance
  • Legal Obligation: Required by law

For B2B cold email: Legitimate interest is usually sufficient if:

  • Email is personalized and relevant to their business
  • You're not sending to personal email addresses
  • You provide clear opt-out

2. Transparent Data Collection

  • Tell them what data you have and how you got it
  • Explain what you'll use it for
  • Include privacy policy link

3. Right to Be Forgotten

  • Recipients can request deletion of their data
  • Must delete within 30 days
  • Applies to all data, not just email address

4. Data Protection

  • Secure storage (encryption at rest and in transit)
  • Access controls (not everyone can see contact data)
  • Breach notification (must report within 72 hours)

5. Third-Party Processors

  • Any tool handling EU data must be GDPR-compliant
  • DPA (Data Processing Agreement) required
  • WarmOpener is GDPR-compliant and provides DPA on request

GDPR-Compliant Email Footer

------
Data Protection: We process your data based on legitimate business interest.
You have the right to object, access, or delete your data.

Privacy Policy: [link]
Unsubscribe: [link]
Delete My Data: [link or email]

Your Company Name, Address

CASL (Canada)

Canada's Anti-Spam Legislation - one of the strictest globally.

Key Differences from CAN-SPAM

  • Opt-in required: Must have consent BEFORE sending (CAN-SPAM is opt-out)
  • Implied consent: 2-year window for business relationships
  • Explicit consent: Must clearly describe what they're consenting to
  • Penalties: Up to $10M CAD per violation

When You Can Email Canadians

Express Consent: They explicitly agreed (checkbox, form submission)

Implied Consent (lasts 2 years):

  • Existing business relationship
  • Recently purchased/inquired
  • Member of same organization
  • Publicly available email (business card, website, directory)

Exempt Communications:

  • Personal (non-commercial) emails
  • Response to inquiries
  • Legal/warranty information

Best Practices for All Jurisdictions

1. Build Permission-Based Lists

Do:

  • Website opt-in forms
  • Event registration (webinar, conference)
  • Downloaded content (ebooks, whitepapers)
  • LinkedIn connections who engaged
  • Business card exchanges

Don't:

  • Purchase email lists
  • Scrape websites
  • Use harvested addresses
  • Add without consent

2. Keep Unsubscribe Simple

  • One-click unsubscribe (no login required)
  • Process immediately (don't wait 10 days)
  • Don't ask "are you sure?" or make them jump through hoops
  • Confirmation page, no further emails

3. Document Everything

  • When/how you collected each email
  • What consent was given (if any)
  • IP addresses of opt-ins (for disputes)
  • Unsubscribe requests and dates
  • Keep records for 3+ years

4. Segment by Jurisdiction

  • Separate lists for US, EU, Canada
  • Apply appropriate rules to each
  • More restrictive = safer globally

5. Monitor Engagement

  • If someone never opens (6+ emails), remove them
  • Low engagement = likely to mark as spam
  • Better to have smaller, engaged list

WarmOpener Compliance Features

Built-in Unsubscribe:

  • Automatic unsubscribe link in all emails
  • One-click process, no login needed
  • Instantly updates database
  • Stops all future emails automatically

Contact Management:

  • Track consent source for each contact
  • Custom fields for consent date/type
  • Easy to export/delete data for GDPR requests
  • Encrypted data storage

Email Footer:

  • Automatically includes physical address (you set in settings)
  • Unsubscribe link added to all templates
  • Privacy policy link (optional)

Red Flags to Avoid

❌ "I hope this email finds you well" to 10,000 people Too generic, obvious mass email

❌ No unsubscribe link Illegal in most jurisdictions

❌ Fake "Re:" or "Fwd:" in subject Deceptive, violates CAN-SPAM

❌ Bought email list No consent = GDPR violation

❌ Ignoring opt-outs Serious violation, guaranteed blacklist

What to Do If Reported

  1. Stop sending immediately to that recipient
  2. Add to suppression list permanently
  3. Review your process - why did they report?
  4. Document the report and your response
  5. Investigate if it's a pattern (multiple reports = big problem)
  6. Fix root cause before resuming sends

⚠️ When in Doubt, Don't Send

If you're unsure whether you have proper permission to email someone, don't send. One spam complaint can trigger an investigation. Better to miss one prospect than risk your entire domain reputation.

💡 Pro Tip

B2B cold email to business addresses using legitimate interest is legal in most jurisdictions (including EU under GDPR) IF:

  1. Email is personalized and relevant to their business role
  2. You provide clear opt-out
  3. You're not harvesting from scraped lists
  4. You have a genuine business reason to contact them

Cold email isn't illegal - spam is illegal. Know the difference.

Need help? Email Support
Email Compliance | WarmOpener Docs | WarmOpener