Kogan has been forced to pay a $310,800 infringement notice for breaching Australian spam laws, following an investigation by the Australian Communications and Media Authority (ACMA).
The investigation found that the retailer sent more than 42 million marketing emails to consumers. Instead of being able to easily unsubscribe, Kogan required consumers to take additional steps setting a password and logging into an account.
The Spam Act requires commercial electronic messages to contain a functional unsubscribe facility.
“Kogan’s breaches have affected millions of consumers. The ACMA received complaints from a number of recipients of Kogan’s email expressing their frustration and concern with Kogan’s practices,” ACMA Chair Nerida O’Loughlin said.
“Businesses must comply with the unsubscribe requirements in the spam rules. This investigation makes clear that businesses can’t force customers to set a password and login to unsubscribe from receiving commercial messages.
“The ACMA sent Kogan multiple compliance alerts before commencing this investigation. These notifications are designed to alert businesses of potential non-compliance with the Spam Act.
“We acknowledge that Kogan fully cooperated with the ACMA in our investigation and took actions to update their unsubscribe facilities prior to its completion,” she added.
A three-year court-enforceable undertaking from Kogan requires the retailer to appoint an independent consultant to review its systems, processes, and procedures, and implement any recommendations. Further, Kogan must train staff responsible for sending marketing messages and report back to the ACMA on actions taken in relation to consumer complaints.