Tilted Forum Project Discussion Community - View Single Post - 825 Million junk e-mails, 343 stolen IDs, make a few thou; lose big

ARTelevision · 05-14-2003, 06:50 PM

This is a pretty big landmark case against a spammer.
Sure he didn't hit the big billion mark but he got damn close.
What a loser...
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(Albany, NY, May 14, 2003 -AP) - - A man accused of sending more than 825 million junk e-mail messages and thwarting attempts to stop him by using stolen identities was arrested, New York's attorney general said Wednesday.

Howard Carmack, 36, was arrested at his Buffalo home Tuesday and remained jailed after failing to post $20,000 bail, Attorney General Eliot Spitzer said. Carmack was arraigned before Buffalo City Court Judge Diane Devlin and pleaded innocent to the charges. He is due back in court on Monday.

Carmack is accused of stealing the identity of two Buffalo-area residents to open accounts with Internet service provider EarthLink. He was charged with forgery, criminal possession of a forgery device, falsifying business records and identity theft and faces up to seven years in prison for the forgery charge.

"This is one of the most difficult and problematic evolutions of e-mail," Spitzer said. "Much `spam' is bothersome but not illegal. When it involves forged identity and identity theft, then it is clearly illegal."

Investigators had been trying to nab Carmack for more than a year. His is the first person charged under New York's identity theft statute, enacted in October, officials said.

A federal judge in Atlanta awarded EarthLink, the nation's third-largest Internet service provider, damages of $16.4 million and a permanent injunction against Carmack last week. EarthLink said Carmack used 343 stolen identities to sign up for e-mail accounts.

Carmack was banned by the judge from sending spam (unsolicited e-mails) or helping others send it. His e-mails included offers for herbal Viagra, weight-loss products and get-rich schemes, including bulk e-mail programs.

"This shows spamming has both civil and criminal consequences," said Dave Baker, EarthLink's vice president of law and public policy. "He was a prolific spammer who was costing us, our customers and Internet users everywhere. It's not just an inconvenience and annoyance, it's fraudulent."

Investigators said they were unsure just how much Carmack made from his e-mail business, but didn't think it was much, perhaps a few thousand dollars.

"We don't believe that his commercial operations were an enormous success," Spitzer said.

Carmack is scheduled to appear in court again Monday. It was unknown if Carmack had hired an attorney yet. His telephone number was not listed.

In January, state Supreme Court Justice Lottie E. Wilkins permanently barred MonsterHut.com of Niagara Falls from sending commercial e-mails to Internet subscribers without their permission.

State officials accused the company of sending about 500 million unsolicited commercial e-mails and then telling complaining recipients that they had requested it.

Spitzer sued MonsterHut after some 750,000 computer users complained that since March 2001 they had received the unwanted messages and tried to have them stopped but were told they had "opted in" to receive them.
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It's the old get-rich-quick obsession. It hits someone and they don't stop until it becomes the biggest losing proposition they could ever imagine. Guess he'll be busting a lot of rocks to pay damages of 16.4 million bucks!

You want to tell us how much spam you get?

Can you imagine how fast and slick the Net would be without these creeps clogging up our ISPs? This was One Guy!

05-14-2003, 06:50 PM	#1 (permalink)
ARTelevision I change Location: USA	825 Million junk e-mails, 343 stolen IDs, make a few thou; lose big This is a pretty big landmark case against a spammer. Sure he didn't hit the big billion mark but he got damn close. What a loser... ....................... (Albany, NY, May 14, 2003 -AP) - - A man accused of sending more than 825 million junk e-mail messages and thwarting attempts to stop him by using stolen identities was arrested, New York's attorney general said Wednesday. Howard Carmack, 36, was arrested at his Buffalo home Tuesday and remained jailed after failing to post $20,000 bail, Attorney General Eliot Spitzer said. Carmack was arraigned before Buffalo City Court Judge Diane Devlin and pleaded innocent to the charges. He is due back in court on Monday. Carmack is accused of stealing the identity of two Buffalo-area residents to open accounts with Internet service provider EarthLink. He was charged with forgery, criminal possession of a forgery device, falsifying business records and identity theft and faces up to seven years in prison for the forgery charge. "This is one of the most difficult and problematic evolutions of e-mail," Spitzer said. "Much `spam' is bothersome but not illegal. When it involves forged identity and identity theft, then it is clearly illegal." Investigators had been trying to nab Carmack for more than a year. His is the first person charged under New York's identity theft statute, enacted in October, officials said. A federal judge in Atlanta awarded EarthLink, the nation's third-largest Internet service provider, damages of $16.4 million and a permanent injunction against Carmack last week. EarthLink said Carmack used 343 stolen identities to sign up for e-mail accounts. Carmack was banned by the judge from sending spam (unsolicited e-mails) or helping others send it. His e-mails included offers for herbal Viagra, weight-loss products and get-rich schemes, including bulk e-mail programs. "This shows spamming has both civil and criminal consequences," said Dave Baker, EarthLink's vice president of law and public policy. "He was a prolific spammer who was costing us, our customers and Internet users everywhere. It's not just an inconvenience and annoyance, it's fraudulent." Investigators said they were unsure just how much Carmack made from his e-mail business, but didn't think it was much, perhaps a few thousand dollars. "We don't believe that his commercial operations were an enormous success," Spitzer said. Carmack is scheduled to appear in court again Monday. It was unknown if Carmack had hired an attorney yet. His telephone number was not listed. In January, state Supreme Court Justice Lottie E. Wilkins permanently barred MonsterHut.com of Niagara Falls from sending commercial e-mails to Internet subscribers without their permission. State officials accused the company of sending about 500 million unsolicited commercial e-mails and then telling complaining recipients that they had requested it. Spitzer sued MonsterHut after some 750,000 computer users complained that since March 2001 they had received the unwanted messages and tried to have them stopped but were told they had "opted in" to receive them. .............................................................. It's the old get-rich-quick obsession. It hits someone and they don't stop until it becomes the biggest losing proposition they could ever imagine. Guess he'll be busting a lot of rocks to pay damages of 16.4 million bucks! You want to tell us how much spam you get? Can you imagine how fast and slick the Net would be without these creeps clogging up our ISPs? This was One Guy! __________________ create evolution