CASL
Canada's Anti-Spam Legislation — a Canadian law governing commercial electronic messages, requiring express or implied consent.
What CASL means
CASL (Canada's Anti-Spam Legislation) is one of the world's strictest anti-spam laws, governing commercial electronic messages (CEMs) including email, SMS, and some social media messages. CASL requires express or implied consent before sending CEMs, clear sender identification, and a functional unsubscribe mechanism. Penalties can reach CAD $10 million per violation for businesses. For advertisers, CASL affects email marketing, lead generation campaigns, and any ad-driven communication funnels targeting Canadian users. Unlike GDPR's legitimate interest basis, CASL generally requires affirmative consent. Compliance requires proper consent records, clear opt-in mechanisms, and ongoing list hygiene.
Related terms
Consent
A user's explicit or implied permission for data collection, processing, or advertising targeting, required by privacy regulations.
GDPR
The General Data Protection Regulation — the EU's comprehensive data protection law governing how personal data is collected, processed, and stored.
CAN-SPAM
The US federal law governing commercial email messages, requiring sender identification, opt-out mechanisms, and truthful headers.
Opt-In
A consent model requiring users to actively agree before their data is collected or they receive marketing communications.