On July 26, TRUSTe announced the first independent certification to reassure consumers that they won’t be subjected to spam when they submit their email address online. TRUSTe's Email Privacy Program allows certified email senders to display a verifiable seal confirming that their email practices conform to strict privacy and fair-treatment standards. Spam, commonly acknowledged as consumers’ top online privacy-related concern, adversely affects companies by limiting the effectiveness of legitimate email communication and inhibiting consumers’ willingness to participate in e-commerce.

“A survey last month found that two-thirds of Internet shoppers decided not to register with a Web site because the privacy policy was too complicated or unclear,” said Fran Maier, executive director of TRUSTe. “This marks a difficult and worsening situation for businesses that rely on trusted digital communication. Companies need a way to declare simply, clearly, and believably, ‘We don’t spam.’ Our seal lets them say that with confidence.”

The seal program was created with technical and financial support from DoubleClick and Return Path. DoubleClick continues to serve as a partner and advisor for the program, and ReturnPath is the exclusive reseller for it. TRUSTe provides certification, monitoring, and oversight for ReturnPath’s Bonded Sender Program.

“Solid permission-based policies and practices are critical to both email deliverability and email address acquisition,” added Matt Blumberg, president and CEO of Return Path. “Prerelease trials of the TRUSTe seal have already demonstrated that it meets those goals.”

Through its Email Privacy Program, TRUSTe grants a “We Don’t Spam” seal to companies that have passed a rigorous screening process. The seal affirms to consumers that the company’s email practices and reputation have been thoroughly reviewed and have met strict standards that eliminate the threat of unwanted email for anyone who gives his or her email address to the sealholder. The seal is placed at the “point of collection” -- the Web pages on which the sealholder collects personal information and email addresses.

Current TRUSTe Web privacy sealholders and Bonded Senders will receive discounted bundled pricing and be allowed to addend their current license agreement to include the Email Privacy Seal. Bonded Senders already substantially meet the Email Privacy Seal requirements, with additional provisions for consumer notice and choice for third-party sharing.

Participants in the email seal program must meet the following requirements:

• Prior consent standard for commercial email
• Preselected option for house files (existing customers)
• Opt-in for third party mailings
• No third-party sharing of email addresses without explicit permission
• Clear, conspicuous notice describing use
• Easy-to-use, responsive, and persistent unsubscribe mechanism
• A privacy statement consistent with email practices
• Willingness to participate in dispute resolution and ongoing monitoring

TRUSTe monitors Email Privacy Program sealholders on an ongoing basis with automated spam-trap notification, automated monitoring of collection page disclosures, unsubscribe functionality testing, and consumer complaint monitoring.

The “We Don’t Spam” seal is already proven to help companies increase online customer acquisition rates. In a prerelease trial, one company found a 7 percent increase in registrations when using the seal.

For more information on the Email Privacy Seal program, contact TRUSTe at (415) 520-3427.

 

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