Administrative services A-Z

Spam mails are unsolicited and/or unwanted electronic advertising messages sent to you in which services and/or products are advertised.

They represent an encroachment on your personal rights or, if sent to companies, an encroachment on their business operations. Anyone who receives spam mails can demand that the sender refrain from sending spam mails to him or her (claim for injunctive relief under civil law).

There are two types of spam mails:
a) general spam mails, i.e. advertising e-mails and newsletters to which you have not subscribed and
b) special spam mails, i.e. e-mails with illegal content or which refer to illegal content (e.g. child pornography or incitement of the masses).

The Internet Complaints Office accepts complaints about spam mails.

Note
The information provided applies to both types of spam mails listed here.
Furthermore, spam mails violate the law against unfair competition (UWG). This results in an independent injunctive relief for the competitor of the sender of a spam mail. You can assert this injunctive relief yourself or turn to a legally capable association for the promotion of commercial or independent professional interests. The latter can enforce the right to cease and desist.

The persons entitled to complain are:

a) private individuals who receive spam mails or
b) companies which are impaired or disturbed in their commercial activities by a spam e-mail.

In the case of complaints about general spam mails, the e-mail must be in German, have been sent unsolicited and contain advertising.

Note
An e-mail contains advertising if it promotes products and/or services. Unsolicited means that you receive the e-mail without your consent.

the spam mail with its metadata (original header in MSG or EML format)

none

You can send your complaint by e-mail to the Internet Complaints Office. Please use the following e-mail addresses depending on the type of spam mail:

• for all spam mails sent without your request: allgemeiner-spam@internet-beschwerdestelle.de
• for all spam mails that also contain or refer to illegal content: besonderer-spam@internet-beschwerdestelle.de

The complaints office needs clues about the sender or the beneficiaries of the spam mail. This information in the sender field of the spam mail is not sufficient for this purpose. You must therefore forward the e-mail with the header (original header) to the Internet Complaints Board.

The complaints office will examine the subject of the complaint. As far as possible, the Complaints Office will take the following steps:

• It shall request the sender to comply with the legal requirements for the sending of advertising e-mails in the future.
• If the sender does not comply, the Complaints Office requires an affidavit from you stating that you
  you did not request the e-mail and
  you have no business relationship with the advertising company.
  
  
• It forwards the findings and the spam mail to the Wettbewerbszentrale or the Verbraucherzentrale Bundesverband. The latter can assert claims for injunctive relief.
• It requests the e-mail provider to take measures to prevent further spam actions.
• It draws the attention of the host provider whose website is being advertised by means of spam to the spam action. The host provider can then take appropriate action (e.g. terminate the contract).
• If the spam mail contains indications of telephone number misuse, it will report this to the Federal Network Agency.

Note
The complaints office does not inform you about the status of the procedure and its outcome. The reason for this is the large number of complaints received. Exceptions are possible.

Please send your complaint by e-mail to the Internet Complaints Office. Please use the following e-mail addresses, depending on the type of spam e-mail:

• for all spam e-mails that were sent to you without your request: allgemeiner-spam@internet-beschwerdestelle.de
• for all spam mails that also contain or refer to illegal content: besonderer-spam@internet-beschwerdestelle.de

• § Section 823 (1) of the German Civil Code (BGB) (liability for damages)
• § Section 1004 of the German Civil Code (BGB) (right to removal and injunctive relief)
• § Section 1 of the Unfair Competition Act (UWG) (purpose of the Act)
• § Section 3 of the Unfair Competition Act (UWG) (prohibition of unfair competition)
• § Section 7 of the Unfair Competition Act (UWG) (Unreasonable harassment)
• § Section 8 of the Unfair Competition Act (UWG) (removal and omission)
• § Section 2 of the German Act on Injunctions for Breaches of Consumer Rights and Other Infringements (UKlaG) (injunctive relief for practices contrary to consumer protection)
• § Section 3 of the German Act on Injunctions for Breaches of Consumer Rights and Other Infringements (UKlaG) (Entitled entities)
• § Section 13 of the German Act on Injunctions for Consumer Rights and Other Infringements (UKlaG) (right to information of the entities entitled to claim)
• Complaints regulations of the eco-Internet Complaints Office

Ministry for Energy, Infrastructure and Digitalisation Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania