SimpleVerifier Team · Reviewed
Is it legal to send cold emails?
In the US, B2B cold email is generally legal under CAN-SPAM if you identify yourself accurately, do not mislead in the subject or headers, include a physical address, and honour opt-outs within 10 business days. Canada's CASL, the UK's PECR and the GDPR are stricter and depend on the recipient. This is not legal advice.
The rules in short
The points that matter, in order.
- US (CAN-SPAM): opt-out based. Accurate From and subject lines, a postal address, a working opt-out honoured within 10 business days.
- Canada (CASL): generally requires consent, with limited implied-consent cases for business addresses.
- UK (PECR) and EU: corporate subscribers are treated differently from individuals, and personal data rules still apply to named contacts.
A boundary
This is general information, not legal advice; ask a lawyer about your own situation.
Related questions
- Does verifying a list make cold emailing legal?
- No. Verification removes addresses that do not exist; it does not create consent or a lawful basis.
Sources
Figures marked as ours come from SimpleVerifier’s own dated tests on made-up addresses, published with their data on the research page. No customer data is used, and we publish no accuracy percentage because we have no independent measurement to back one.
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