Canning the spam

Unsolicited text messages carrying promotions and offers, also known as spam, have been banned in most countries since 2002.

Following a European Union directive, Britain enacted its law in December 2003 to make "spamming" a criminal offense. Companies and advertisers must get permission from people before they can make contact via e-mail or text, or face a fine of 5,000 pounds ($8,000).

In the same year, Italy also announced tougher regulations for spammers, including a penalty of 90,000 euros ($130,000) and a prison term of three years.