The Commonwealth Bank of Australia’s CommSec broking arm has been hit with a $55,000 fine by the nation’s communications regulator, following complaints under the Spam Act (2003).

Customers had accused the financial giant of continuing to email them, despite having withdrawn their consent. ACMA had also found emails from CommSec without the option to unsubscribe.

“ACMA expects that Australian businesses take note of this outcome,’ said ACMA chairman Chris Chapman in a statement.

‘Under the Spam Act, every person has the right to unsubscribe from receiving commercial electronic messages and to have that request acted on effectively and quickly. The failure to act on a request can result in significant penalties if a business is found to have breached the Act.’

Chapman said CommSec had initiated “stringent reviews of its systems and processes” as a result of ACMA’s action, and had demonstrated a commitment to change to comply with the legislation. An independent consultant has been appointed to asses CommSec’s reviews and conduct quarterly audits on its email campaigns for 12 months.

CommSec will also introduce an internal training program to rectify its mistakes and report “regularly” to ACMA on its progress.

Image credit: Stephanie Hofschlaeger, royalty free

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