27 Junk Faxes Could Cost $432,000

Last Update: August 9th, 2021

Interesting FCC documents recently filed showing the process of the FEC going after a junk fax broadcaster, the FCC is currently attempting to find a software training company liable of sending 27 junk faxes to advertise its business, in an unrelated but similar situation, they are also doing the same for an employee benefits group for 97 junk faxes.

The cost? the FEC is currently looking for $432,000, or $16,000 per junk fax for the software training company, the maximum for that type of violation. On a relative note, the employee benefits group is getting off a little easier on a per-junk-fax basis, with a total fine of $603,000, or $6,216 per junk fax – based on $4,500 per junk fax, and $10,000 per junk fax after a request had been made to stop sending the faxes.

Details of the claim include the FEC’s position that the company was cited for previous junk faxing before being fined. The company’s response to the citation that is was no longer in business, however according to the FEC, there was a link between the individual(s) behind the company and a similarly named company that resurfaced in the FEC’s junk fax complaint line soon after.

The release from the FEC is a good read for as a warning for anyone considering using a broadcast fax service.

Another very important note from these filings is the easy way that the identity of the sender was able to be confirmed by confirming the transmissions from the carrier – an important note for any legal issues involved with transmitting messages and confirming the identity of the sender and the receiver – as the identity of a fax sender can be confirmed much easier than email or other electronic communication can.

For the entire FEC release, see http://transition.fcc.gov/Daily_Releases/Daily_Business/2012/db0223/FCC-12-23A1.pdf and http://transition.fcc.gov/Daily_Releases/Daily_Business/2012/db0229/FCC-12-24A1.pdf