Why do politicians like spam

Canada's anti-spam law bans text messages that are commercial in nature unless the recipient has signed up to receive them. But the law does not cover "non-commercial" messages such as the ones sent out by Scheer's team over the weekend. There are also exceptions made for messages sent by, or on behalf of, a political party or a candidate running for elected office. If you have any concerns about a message you've received, you can still contact the Spam Reporting Centre.

Not really, said Tamir Israel, staff lawyer for the Canadian Internet Policy and Public Interest Clinic at the University of Ottawa, which studies public policy issues related to law and technology. The one exception is automated phone dialling operations, or "robocalls. If you text back or click on the link, the sender knows that you received and read the message and that your number corresponds to a real phone.

Your number and area code also provide some location information. Once you click through the link, which is unique to you, your phone number can be linked to a profile of you, Israel said. It may show what parts of the web page you clicked through to — and it may place a file called a "cookie" on your browser showing which other sites you visited, until you "clear" or erase those cookies in your browser's privacy settings.

The Conservative website's own privacy policy says that "non-personal information may be collected by the Conservative Party through the use of cookies, including third-party cookies. Alex Marland, a political science professor who studies political marketing at Memorial University, said such unique web addresses also are used to help parties decide which versions of a text message earn more clicks.

Hann was asked why some versions of the message didn't include Scheer's name or that of his party. If, after having clicked through the text message, you actually enter your personal information on the website, the Conservative Party's privacy policy says that you consent to being added to the party's email list.

That's why we got an anti-spam law in the first place, Israel said. Such malware includes software that locks your computer and makes it unusable until you pay a ransom , and is often designed to be installed the minute you load a page.

Even in a polarized era, the survey reveals deep divisions in both partisan coalitions. Use this tool to compare the groups on some key topics and their demographics.

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If politicians are allowed to spam us, shouldn't we at least have the right to opt out? Between fraudsters bombarding our phones with bogus messages about delivery items, and former Liberal MP turned United Australia Party leader Craig Kelly providing unsolicited texts on behalf of the United Australian Party, many Australians have had enough of receiving a relentless barrage of unwanted spam.

Federal Senator Stirling Griff has announced that next month he will be introducing laws to stop politicians from spamming phones with unsolicited messages. And should something be done to address this issue?

It imposes obligations on how organisations caught by the Act are required to handle personal information, gives individuals some control over the disclosure of their personal information, and requires organisations to notify people if there has been a privacy breach that could cause them harm. Political parties are exempt from these laws, essentially meaning they can obtain your personal information and pepper you with unsolicited messages with impunity. But why are politicians free to do this?

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