USA: A Federal court has struck down a Florida Anti-Caller ID Spoofing Law as unconstitutional

[PRWEB] In a landmark case that could lead to limits on states' attempts to regulate activities conducted over electronic networks, including the Internet, the U.S. District Court in Miami ruled that Florida's recently enacted Caller ID Anti-Spoofing Act was unconstitutional and issued a judgment in favor of SpoofCard.com's parent company, TelTech Systems Inc, and other plaintiffs. The Act prohibited most callers, and service providers, such as SpoofCard, from using Caller ID spoofing (which is the changing of the Caller ID to show any desired number) when making a call within Florida, or to any person in Florida.

The plaintiffs, who also included callers that use the Caller ID spoofing feature on their business and personal calls, claimed that the Florida law violated the U.S. constitution (TelTech Systems Inc. v. McCollum, 08-61664-CIV (U.S. D.Ct. S. D. Fl.)). The court agreed and held the Act unconstitutional, reasoning that the proliferation of mobile phones, call forwarding and other technological developments, made it impossible for callers or service providers outside of Florida to ensure that they were not violating the Florida law except by not using Caller ID spoofing at all. Thus, the law had the practical effect of regulating commerce outside the state's borders, in violation of the Commerce Clause of the U.S. constitution.

The court's reasoning applies broadly to state attempts to regulate activities conducted over electronic networks, including the Internet. Moving forward, this landmark court decision is an important precedent for challenges to any potential legislation regarding anti-Caller ID spoofing laws in other states.

SpoofCard is the world's largest Caller ID spoofing service provider. SpoofCard recently began offering its service outside the United States and Canada, in a groundbreaking global expansion. SpoofCard is available to anyone, is purchased as a prepaid service similar to a calling card, and works to and from any phone. SpoofCard customers range from individuals, to business professionals, to celebrities.

Federal Court Strikes Down Florida Anti-Caller ID Spoofing Law
See also SpoofCard