Spam and Phishing Guilty Plea

Published Fri, 2008-03-21 18:05 Spam

DANIEL MASCIA, 24, of West Haven, pleaded guilty March 17, before United States Magistrate Judge Donna F. Martinez in Hartford to one count of conspiracy to commit fraud in connection with access devices and one count of fraud in connection with electronic mail. The charges relate to a “phishing” and “spamming” scheme that targeted AOL subscribers.

According to documents filed with the Court and statements made in court, MASCIA and his co-defendants conspired to “harvest” email addresses of AOL subscribers from the Internet. The defendants then spammed thousands of AOL subscribers with counterfeit emails purporting, for example, to convey an electronic greeting card. If an AOL subscriber attempted to view the greeting card, the subscriber’s computer would be infected with a software trojan preventing the subscriber from accessing AOL without entering information including the subscriber’s name, address, Social Security account number, credit card number, bank account number, and personal identification number. The defendants used the information to produce counterfeit debit cards, which they used at ATM machines, online, and at retail outlets to obtain money, goods, and services.

In pleading guilty, MASCIA admitted that, during a two-day period in January 2006, he sent thousands of fraudulent emails from his home to AOL subscribers.

MASCIA is scheduled to be sentenced on June 4, 2008, by United States District Judge Alvin W. Thompson in Hartford. On the charge of conspiring to commit fraud in connection with access devices, MASCIA faces a maximum term of imprisonment of seven and one-half years and a fine of up to $250,000. On the charge of committing fraud in connection with electronic mail, a law enacted as part of the CAN-SPAM Act of 2003, MASCIA faces a maximum term of imprisonment of five years and a fine of up to $250,000.

This case has been investigated by the West Haven Police Department, the United States Postal Inspection Service, the United States Secret Service, and the Federal Bureau of Investigation. The case is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Edward Chang.

Post new comment

* Internet
* Software
* Linux
* Computers/Servers
* Memory
* RFID
* Video Cards
* NanoTechnology
* Mobile

* Space
* Military
* Energy
* Spam
* Corporate Finance
* Acquisitions and Mergers
* CPU
* Embedded
* Automotive Tech

Website Spam Settlement An X-rated Web operation that paid affiliates who used illegal e-mail to drive customers to its Web sites will pay a $413,000 civil penalty under a settlement reached with the FTC and the Department of Justice. The settlement also bars the illegal marketing practices in the future and requires the operator to monitor its affiliates to ensure that they are complying with the law. In 2005, the FTC cracked down on seven companies that illegally exposed unwitting consumers, including children, to graphic sexual content, in violation of federal laws. Five of those cases were previously settled. The settlement announced today with Cyberheat, Inc., ends the litigation in that case, and brings the total combined civil penalty amount in these cases to over $1.6 million.
Felony SPAM Conviction Upheld The Virginia Supreme Court has upheld the nation’s first felony SPAM conviction. “SPAM” refers to unsolicited bulk email sent by fraudulent means. In November of 2004, Jeremy Jaynes was convicted by a jury in Loudoun County Circuit Court on three counts of violating Virginia’s groundbreaking Anti-Spam Act, which was passed into law in 2003. This marked the first ever felony conviction in a SPAM case, and the case received international attention. After convicting the defendant, the same jury sentenced him to serve nine years in jail. The defendant appealed his conviction. In September of 2006 the Virginia Court of Appeals affirmed the constitutionality of Virginia’s Anti-SPAM Statute and upheld the conviction. The Virginia Supreme Court today upheld this decision.
Spam Increases, Botnets Surpass Storm Secure email and Internet gateway security provider Marshal has released the findings of its second Marshal TRACE (Threat Research and Content Engineering) Biannual Report for 2007. The report found that total spam volume increased by over 50 per cent in the latter half of 2007. Health spam, promoting pharmaceuticals such as weight loss pills, was the dominant spam category in 2007, comprising nearly 70 per cent of all spam in the year. While interestingly, Stock spam declined in the second half of 2007 to 1 per cent of all spam, compared to 50 per cent in February 2007.
Spammers to Pay More Than $2.5 Million At the request of the Federal Trade Commission, a federal judge has ordered Sili Neutraceuticals, LLC and Brian McDaid to pay more than $2.5 million for making false advertising claims and sending illegal e-mail messages in violation of the FTC Act and the CAN-SPAM Act (Controlling the Assault of Non-Solicited Pornography and Marketing Act). On January 23, U.S. District Court Judge David H. Coar ordered the company and McDaid, individually and doing business as Kaycon, Ltd., to stop misrepresenting any products or services, including hoodia - or human growth hormone-related (HGH) products, and stop sending illegal spam. The court also entered a judgment against the defendants in the amount of $2,569,851.77. In August 2007, the FTC charged the defendants with CAN-SPAM violations and making false and unsubstantiated claims about hoodia weight-loss products and HGH anti-aging products, and a district court judge ordered a freeze of their assets and a halt to the e-mails and product claims.
Deceptive Spam Advertiser, $200,000 Civil Penalty An online advertiser that drove traffic to its Web sites using spam e-mails with misleading subject lines has agreed to settle Federal Trade Commission charges that it failed to disclose that consumers have to spend money to receive the so-called "free" items it touts. The settlement, filed by the Department of Justice on behalf of the FTC, requires the defendants to disclose the costs and obligations to qualify for the advertised products or services, and bars them from sending e-mail that violates the CAN-SPAM Act. The settlement also requires that the company pay $200,000 in civil penalties.