Questions tagged [email]

Questions relating to the law as it applies to email

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22 votes
5 answers
5k views

Is it legal for a company to require you to delete your account to unsubscribe from marketing emails?

I'm subscribed to "Visual Studio Dev Essentials" (so that I can download older versions of Visual Studio from the Microsoft website), but they are sending me unwanted marketing emails ...
  • 345
0 votes
1 answer
88 views

Is it legal for one email-service-provider to send emails using the exact identical email-address of another email-service-provider? [closed]

Question - Is it legal for one email-service-provider to send emails using the exact identical email-address of another email-service-provider ? This happened to me in the last 3 days, the two ...
1 vote
1 answer
76 views

How to conserve legal value of email after leaving organization and thus losing access to email account?

I'm leaving an institution I've been working for. I received notice that my institutional email account will be shut down in some months. That is just Gmail hidden behind a non-Gmail address, i.e. ...
0 votes
1 answer
57 views

Publicly sharing information obtained over e-mail (no NDA)

For data analysis purposes, I would like to request an offer / overview of product features with various companies, posing as a prospecting customer over e-mail. I would like to analyse this data and ...
1 vote
2 answers
146 views

How do email delivery services store users' email addresses in a GDPR compliant way?

Mailchimp, Twilio, Hubspot and other services provide apis to save lists of email-addresses and send them emails (marketing, technical, etc.). Even if a user asked to unsubscribe, those services will ...
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2 votes
1 answer
150 views

Retailer is constantly emailing me with receipts for transactions that aren't related to me

So I've got a bit of a weird situation. I've been receiving e-mail receipts from a reasonably well-known high street retailer in the UK for transactions that have nothing to do with me. These seem ...
  • 23
2 votes
2 answers
59 views

Citing whole mailing list messages on the web

When I cite a complete message from a mailing list, omitting all personal information, if any, that is relatively concise (“Hi”, definition of problem, question, “Thank You”), can I cite the message ...
  • 151
3 votes
1 answer
97 views

Legally required information and unmonitored email addresses

When one is required to inform a company of something, and some email is sent to a mailbox that is not monitored, has the company been informed? For example, say someone had a car insurance policy ...
  • 3,368
-2 votes
1 answer
150 views

GDPR Compliance for Application That Guesses Email Addresses

I live in the U.S. and am developing a browser extension that grabs a person's first name, last name, and company name from their LinkedIn profile and then attempts to guess their email address based ...
  • 13
1 vote
1 answer
104 views

If I copied an agreement and sent it as an email and had someone reply with the fields and "I agree" would it be a valid contract?

Have been getting agreements(contracts) signed electronically using Sites like Hello Sign and Docusign, but the problem is people do not always view the agreement, and then it does not get signed. My ...
1 vote
1 answer
80 views

Is it possible to send an additional email to people who didn't confirm their subscription?

We are wondering if we can send another email to people who subscribed to our newsletter but never clicked on the confirmation link sent afterwards. Is it ok GDPR-wise?
-1 votes
1 answer
103 views

Anonymously forwarding emails

I was thinking about making this as a side project to generate traffic on my Canadian website... Let's say I create a service similar to yopmail.com whereas I allow users to generate email addresses ...
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0 votes
1 answer
175 views

My old employer is still sending emails from my email account 2 years later

I was let go almost 2 years ago and my old employer is still sending emails, as though they were from me, to my old customers. Is that legal?
1 vote
1 answer
90 views

Is my name and email address being sent to another customer a GDPR violation?

An agency, to which I provided my personal email address (contains my full name), has emailed me and another of their customers (both emails in "TO" field). The other customer and I have ...
  • 163
0 votes
1 answer
76 views

Is it legal to publish email that wasn't sent to you, without the consent of the sender?

Someone took a screen shot of an email I sent, and don't know if it was a person on the distribution list, or someone else. But then another person posted that screen shot, with visible contact ...
  • 1
-2 votes
4 answers
8k views

Is it illegal to send email to someone’s work account?

Let’s say I want to reach out to someone working in a company like Apple or Google. For example I have a girlfriend working in Apple and we broke up. Then I send an email to her work account with ...
2 votes
4 answers
3k views

Is it legal to CC a real or fake lawyer on an email as an intimidation tactic? What if this is combined with registering a new domain?

I heard about this idea on Reddit. To intimidate someone, send them an email and CC (copy) a lawyer with their business email address with the name of the law firm they work for. Also, you can ...
1 vote
1 answer
49 views

GDPR and Certification Check

Based in UK. I manage a certification website that allows users to register an account and complete a course, before doing so they explicitly agree to the website's privacy policy and GDPR. The ...
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10 votes
1 answer
2k views

Personal devices subject to subpoena?

I work for a company in the US in IT, and don't have a company provided phone. I've resisted installing work-related apps on my phone (such as Skype/Teams, Outlook) out of concern that my phone might ...
  • 1,117
1 vote
0 answers
110 views

Is an email private or confidential just because we say so in Canada? [duplicate]

I received an email that claimed that its contents were confidential and private, and not to be shared. Sometimes people have automatic privacy notices at the footers of their emails, which is not the ...
user avatar
4 votes
1 answer
895 views

"For people in Canada" in MS Teams' "Your daily briefing" email

The "Your daily briefing" email from Microsoft Teams contains a section called "For People in Canada": For people in Canada This is a mandatory service communication. To set your ...
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1 vote
3 answers
258 views

GDPR Disclaimer On Cold Call Emails

I live in the United States. I am helping someone who just started an online store selling tee shirts. In my research to come up with a plan regarding cold call email marketing, I came across GDPR. ...
1 vote
1 answer
29 views

Open release of a personal attorney email to a school board

A school board gets an email from superintendent's personal attorney restricting questioning of the superintendent. Is it legal to read publicly in an open public meeting?
  • 11
1 vote
1 answer
39 views

Written promise pre-purchase vs signed agreement, what's stronger?

Imagine the following situation: A customer of a relatively high cost service asks a supplier for a full refund option bound to a specific condition that may or may not occur later in the process. The ...
  • 11
0 votes
2 answers
148 views

Can I post a private email conversation on a social media forum

I recently had a dispute with an online retailer. The customer service representative really showed their colors in the emails they sent to me. I then wanted to show a social media forum this ...
  • 1
1 vote
1 answer
154 views

GDPR & Privacy Policy for a personal website where the only potential personal data is IP logs

I'm based in the UK, and I am building a personal website (basically an online resume/portfolio) which I have ensured does not collect any personal information (there are no forms, cookies etc.). I do ...
0 votes
1 answer
70 views

CAN-SPAM Act - Commercial Advertisement or Promotion

CAN SPAM Act requires telling your email recipients where you're located: Your message must include your valid physical postal address. This can be your current street address, a post office box you’...
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22 votes
2 answers
3k views

Could the GoDaddy employee self-phishing test constitute a breach of contract?

Recently, GoDaddy executed a self-phishing test against its own employees. The message that employees received said that they could claim their holiday bonus by submitting their contact details on ...
0 votes
1 answer
113 views

If there is more than 1 person harassing you online, are separate court orders required to identify each one?

If there is more than 1 email account harassing you online, do you need to obtain separate court orders to identify each one, or is one order sufficient? What if one of the accounts you’re naming is ...
3 votes
3 answers
701 views

Is an email legally binding for booking an apartment in Germany?

I am a visiting scientist in Heidelberg, Germany. I was unsuccessful in my search for a private apartment in town so I made a reservation request with the University guest house. They sent me a ...
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-2 votes
1 answer
228 views

Will a court order be taken out for this? Could the FBI get involved in something like this? [closed]

I had 3 gmail accounts (where I had the same generic random first name and other words and random letters that I was made to put in to get them). None of them contained no personal information of mine....
0 votes
1 answer
240 views

I emailed a law and data privacy professor regarding an issue I was having to do with internet privacy law. Will I get in legal trouble for this?

I emailed an American law and data privacy professor to ask to help explain whether google could reveal my information if a court order was taken out to identify me. I was very over emotional in the ...
1 vote
1 answer
47 views

Is including the text of an email in a document attached to the same email indicative of litigious intent?

I began having conversations with a consulting firm which approached me with an offer of services. I liked the presentation and expressed willingness to look over the agreement and consider the offer. ...
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3 votes
1 answer
417 views

What potential lawsuits does the recent Expensify fiasco expose the company to?

As some of you may know just by checking your mailboxes, David Barrett, the CEO of Expensify, recently sent out a political endorsement e-mail to all of Expensify's users (supposedly, 10 million ...
0 votes
2 answers
146 views

Old Employer Contacting New Employer to Threaten Regarding Future Contract(s)

I recently resigned from the company I was with after some strong disagreements about the direction and architectural decisions of some senior members of staff, and started work for a new one. During ...
1 vote
0 answers
147 views

Can someone force me to delete a particular email?

Let's look at the following scenario: institution X holds a webinar, and after it is finished sends a follow-up email to all the participants leaking their email addresses in the CC field of the email ...
-2 votes
2 answers
117 views

Ex misuses my email for his utility account. Can I change it myself?

My ex from back in 2015 has used my email address for his electricity account. He's in Arkansas; I live in California. Back in 2016 I kept receiving emails in regards to the account. I contacted him ...
4 votes
2 answers
250 views

Delete another user's account using my email address

Let's suppose I have an email account: user@example.com. Then, some other user signs up on a third-party service with email-based login with my email address (by mistake or not) and then I receive a ...
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2 votes
1 answer
166 views

Does sharing personal data publicly imply consent for collection and processing?

Suppose an EU citizen publishes their personal information, such as name and contact details online, for instance, on social media. If I wanted to contact them in my professional capacity over email, ...
user avatar
5 votes
1 answer
154 views

Being the unintended recipient of an email; obliged to inform sender? [duplicate]

My real name seems to be very common in the US. I am UK based. I quite often get private emails not intended for me to my personal gmail account. They're not spam or phishing attempts. These have ...
  • 151
0 votes
1 answer
106 views

Is it legal to post contents of an email sent to me if I make everyone anonymous?

I just want to post some screenshots of an email in a video to give my story context. I will use fake names for everyone and remove any personal information so everyone is anonymous. If the sender ...
  • 1
2 votes
2 answers
2k views

Is it illegal to pre-check the email opt-in option for an html form?

Email opt-in and opt-out for online registration forms is subject to GDPR compliance rules. However, I don't see any information out there about whether it is ok for an email opt-in checkbox to be pre-...
1 vote
1 answer
1k views

Is it legal to post an email to social media if the email also contains a photo of the sender and other personal identifiable information?

I've seen a few similar questions asked before, however would posting a screenshot of an email onto social media be legal under the following circumstances: The poster on social media is the ...
0 votes
1 answer
59 views

Can Lavabit be suspended again?

From the about page: In 2013, we suspended service to protect our global customers when the U.S. government ordered us to release our Transport Layer Security private keys. To protect your ...
  • 101
0 votes
1 answer
199 views

Can I refuse to send an email to untrusted domain

If I have to discuss financial, legal or medical subjects (or anything requiring privacy, or anything really) via email, can I refuse to do so if I don't trust the domain of the email of the other ...
0 votes
0 answers
104 views

Mortgage company sent full name, SSN, DOB, and address over email

Just as I said in the title. My mortgage company sent me a document I need to sign via unencrypted email and unfortunately it was pre-filled with my full name, SSN, DOB, and home address. I'm very ...
1 vote
1 answer
668 views

Email vs certified mail

Florida HOAs are required to provide access to "written" request for HOA recrods. The link states: Florida Statue 720.303 (5) states that official records must be maintained within the state ...
  • 6,053
3 votes
1 answer
135 views

Can I be legally compelled, in the U.S., to return/destroy old work emails that are on my own laptop?

I used to work remotely and had my own hardware, etc. The company used Microsoft exchange (or similar) to run their email, store it on servers, etc. They killed my email account when I left but all my ...
  • 653
0 votes
0 answers
64 views

Received emails from previous domain owner

I've recently bought a domain name which is written differently than an already existing domain name. That already existing domain is owned by a company. I've set up a wildcard redirect for all ...
1 vote
2 answers
320 views

Where is the line between transactional vs marketing emails with GDPR?

If a company that offers a product where the user logs in, such as a SAAS product, and they send emails with certain intentions, where is the line drawn between a transactional and a marketing email? ...