Listening to the Federal Trade Commission, one easily can get the impression that deceptive e-mail is downright un-American, since so much of it comes from places like Nigeria, Canada and Russia.
That's why the top consumer watchdog agency is asking Congress for expanded power to pursue foreign spammers, among other requests.
This week, the FTC requested an extension of authority to work more intensively with foreign governments in fraud investigations. In a prepared statement, the agency maintained that such powers "would help the FTC fight deceptive spam by allowing the commission to investigate more fully spam originating from outside the United States."
The agency proposal, presented Wednesday before subcommittees of the Senate and the House of Representatives, also would permit the FTC to obtain records about suspected spammers, without the spammer being informed.
The request for expanded powers comes as escalating complaints about spam is putting pressure on the commission to come up with ways to crack down on junk e-mailers.
"The volume of spam is increasing at astonishing rates," said Commissioner Orson Swindle, in a testimony Wednesday.
Swindle said the commission is committed to pursuing an aggressive law enforcement program against deceptive spam, but noted it has historically been costly and technically challenging to find the guilty parties.
Commissioner Mozelle Thompson said a big part of the problem is the growing number of cross-border complaints from American consumers about foreign companies. In 2002, the agency received more than 24,000 such complaints, nearly double the number it recorded a year earlier.
As members of House and Senate subcommittees considered the FTC's request for expanded powers, they also heard testimony from representatives of telecommunication industry and civil rights groups, some of whom were critical of the agency's approach to fighting spam.
Marc Rotenberg, executive director of the Electronic Privacy Information Center, cautioned that the proposal could open Americans to investigation by foreign governments.
Without well-defined restrictions on data-sharing, Rotenberg feared the proposal could clear the way for other countries to prosecute Americans from overseas for pursuing activities that are legally protected in the United States.
Still, Rotenberg agreed with FTC commissioners about the extent of the cross-border spam problem. Citing the FTC's central database, he noted that 68 percent of all fraudulent foreign money offers come from companies located in Africa. Sixty-one percent of prize and sweepstakes offers, meanwhile, are from companies in Canada.
After Wednesday's testimony, it remained uncertain whether members of congress would approve the FTC's request.
Representative Cliff Stearns (R-Fla.) advised lawmakers to give "careful consideration" to the FTC's requests to ensure that civil liberties are not compromised.
At the same time, Stearns indicated he was all for going after overseas spammers.
"One reason that spam as a problem defies easy solutions is the fact that even if we combat it effectively within our borders, spam will continue to be a serious nuisance and costly problem, as it will be dispatched from overseas," he said. "Thus, it is imperative that we explore ways to better protect our consumers from unfair, deceptive and fraudulent activities that increasingly have international dimensions to them."
