FTC wins a temporary injunction against alleged spammer

Computerworld - A federal judge late last week ordered "spam king" Sanford Wallace and his companies to remove any software scripts from their Web sites that exploit security vulnerabilities in some versions of the Internet Explorer Web browser. The vulnerabilities allow the alleged installation and use of computer code or content without a user's authorization, according to a complaint filed against Wallace by the Federal Trade Commission.
U.S. District Judge Joseph A. DiClerico Jr. issued the temporary injunction in the case after the FTC filed a lawsuit earlier this month against Wallace and his companies, Seismic Entertainment Productions Inc. and SmartBot.net Inc. Wallace, who formerly operated bulk e-mail vendor Cyber Promotions Inc. in the late 1990s until leaving the business and becoming a spam consultant, had earned the nickname "the spam king" in the industry due to the volumes of unsolicited e-mails churned out by his companies.
The latest legal fight involves an unknown number of cases of unsolicited spam e-mails, pop-up windows and adware offerings to computer users.
Laura Sullivan, an attorney for the FTC, said the agency prosecuted Wallace after receiving more than 300 complaints from computer users about spam from Wallace's latest companies. "We were able to trace those complaints" to Wallace and his businesses using information in many of the e-mails, she said.
DiClerico wrote that his order will remain in place until he makes a ruling on a government motion for a preliminary injunction in the case.
Earlier this month (see story), the FTC filed a three-count civil suit against Wallace and his businesses, alleging that their actions and products hijacked users' computers and secretly changed settings, then barraged them with pop-up ads and installed adware and other programs that spy on Web surfing. The lawsuit also alleged that the defendants' actions unfairly induced computer users to buy their products, which they claimed would stop such attacks.

The actions have taken place since at least November 2003, according to the lawsuit.
Attorneys for the defendants filed objections to the FTC's request for a temporary restraining order, but the court ruled in favor of the FTC motion in preparation for an evidentiary hearing on Nov. 9 and 10. Wallace's attorney, Ralph A. Jacobs, couldn't be reached for comment today.
In its lawsuit, the FTC said it received complaints from users that the spyware allegedly caused computers to malfunction, slow down or even stop working altogether. The agency alleges that the spyware operation violates federal law and wants the practices ended permanently.
One complaint came from the Center for