Consumers are becoming increasingly angry about rampant SMS and email spam, but what they do not know is that the law is on their side and that there are ways to stop and even prosecute persistent spammers. This was the message from Cape Town-based privacy lawyer Brendan Hughes, of Michalson and Associates, in a presentation on data privacy legislation to Durban businesses last week. Hughes, a member of the appeals panel that adjudicates complaints for the Wireless Application Service Providers' Association (Waspa), said that direct marketing using consumers' personal information was "big business". However, Hughes said businesses that continued to send marketing material or spam to consumers who had asked to be removed from mailing lists could be criminally prosecuted under Section 45 of the Electronic Communications and Transactions Act of 2002.

How to stop junk mail

Junk mail. Piles of it. In your mailbox, every day. You don't want it. Most of the time, you didn't ask for it. But when it arrives, you have to "do" something with it: Shred it. Trash it. Recycle it.You'll probably never eliminate "all" the mail you don't want. But with a little effort, you can remove your name from enough mailing lists and databases to cut down some of the clutter.We've rounded up some of the best tips for opting out of the direct-mail deluge. Follow these steps and you're bound to lessen your mail carrier's load.Remember: You won't see results right away, because a lot of direct mail is prepared and addressed in advance. So wait at least two or three months before you throw up your hands in disgust.It's a painstaking process -- but so is handling all that junk mail, right?Credit card offersIf you're not shopping for a new credit card, opt out of those pre-approved offers.

Harte-Hanks Launches New Web Platform www.citdb.com to Make Tech Contacts Easily Available to Emerging Marketers

Harte-Hanks, Inc. (NYSE: HHS), a worldwide direct and targeted marketing company, announced today the release of an e-commerce platform designed to provide small and emerging technology marketers and sellers easy access to technology contacts across North America, Europe and South America. The new site, http://www.citdb.com, allows technology companies with small marketing budgets to search and select contacts from the Harte-Hanks Ci Technology Database (CiTDB), a source of rich installed technology content from 700,000 business sites on three continents.

CiTDB.com users can focus their search on a very specific geographical area or market sector, and rent a list of contacts they want, entirely online by credit card. The data made available are name, company, mailing address and telephone number based on the user's query, but without the location's technology profile information that is only associated with a full CiTDB subscription.

CATA Named #1 Transit System in North America

The Capital Area Transportation Authority (CATA) has been named the best transit system of its size in North America by the American Public Transportation Association (APTA).

CATA was ranked #1 in the competitive 4-30 million passenger trips category. This category includes 106 transit systems. APTA gives out the Outstanding Transportation System Achievement Award annually to honor transit systems demonstrating exceptional efficiency and effectiveness. Transit systems are judged on services and programs, safety, operations, customer service, financial management, attendance and employee costs, advancement of minorities and women, marketing, policy and administration, and community relations.

Report Subscriptions, ACH Processing, and Payment Updates Mark Summer Upgrade of Travis Software's WebCOBRA.com

Travis Software Corp., a market leader of Advanced Employee Benefits Software Administration, announced today the Summer 2007 upgrade of its WebCOBRA.com system. The new version offers more enhanced features, including Report Subscriptions, ACH Processing, and a Payment Schedule of Qualified Beneficiary (QB) premiums for easy review of upcoming payment amounts.

The newly enhanced version of WebCOBRA.com allows for more control over reporting capabilities.