Sponsored by:
Assemblywoman JOANN DOWNEY
District 11 (Monmouth)
Assemblyman ERIC HOUGHTALING
District 11 (Monmouth)
Assemblywoman VALERIE VAINIERI HUTTLE
District 37 (Bergen)
SYNOPSIS
Requires Internet service providers to warn residential subscribers of potential scams or other frauds committed through use of their service.
CURRENT VERSION OF TEXT
As introduced.
An Act requiring Internet service providers to communicate certain warning information and supplementing P.L.1960, c.39 (C.56:8-1 et seq.).
Be It Enacted by the Senate and General Assembly of the State of New Jersey:
1. As used in P.L. , c. (C. ) (pending before the Legislature as this bill):
“Director” means the Director of the Division of Consumer Affairs in the Department of Law and Public Safety.
“Division” means the Division of Consumer Affairs in the Department of Law and Public Safety.
“Internet service provider” or “provider” means any person, business, or organization qualified to do business in this State that provides a subscriber with the ability to connect to the Internet through equipment that is located in this State.
“Subscriber” means a person who is a resident of this State that receives Internet access service from an Internet service provider.
2. a. An Internet service provider shall, consistent with federal law, publish a statement on every bill sent to a subscriber a warning statement describing the potential for active scams of which the provider may be aware, to the best of the knowledge of the provider, or other types of fraud that may be committed through the use of the Internet access service offered by the provider. The warning statement shall include information as determined by the director by regulation, pursuant to section 4 of P.L. , c. (C. ) (pending before the Legislature as this bill), and shall include, but not be limited to, contact information for the division and any other appropriate State or federal government agency for a subscriber to report a suspected scam or other type of suspected fraud.
b. An Internet service provider shall publish the warning statement required, pursuant to subsection a. of this section, on a prominent location on the homepage of the provider’s Internet website.
3. It shall be an unlawful practice and violation of P.L.1960, c.39 (C.56:8-1 et seq.) to violate section 2 of P.L. , c. (C. ) (pending before the Legislature as this bill).
4. The director shall adopt rules and regulations, pursuant to the "Administrative Procedure Act," P.L.1968, c.410 (C.52:14B-1 et seq.), necessary to implement the provisions of P.L. , c. (C. ) (pending before the Legislature as this bill).
5. This act shall take
effect immediately, but shall remain inoperative for 60 days following the date
of enactment.
STATEMENT
This bill requires an Internet service provider (service provider) to publish, in a manner consistent with federal law, a statement on every bill sent to an Internet service subscriber who is a resident of this State a warning statement describing the potential for active scams of which the service provider may be aware, to the best of the knowledge of the service provider, or other types of suspected fraud that may be committed through the use of the Internet access service offered by the service provider. The warning statement is to include information as determined by the Director of the Division of Consumer Affairs (division) by regulation, and is to include, but not be limited to, contact information for the division and other appropriate State or federal government agency for an Internet service subscriber to report a suspected scam or other types of fraud. The bill provides that it is an unlawful practice under the consumer fraud act, P.L.1960, c.39 (C.56:8-1 et seq.) for a violation of the requirements under section 2 of the bill.