[LINK] Alleged 'spam king' arrested

[Eric Scheid]

> US authorities say users worldwide have already
> noticed a drop in junk email volume.

can anyone confirm this from personal experience?

e.

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Alleged 'spam king' arrested
http://australianit.news.com.au/story/0,24897,21825568-16123,00.html

Gene Johnson in Seattle | May 31, 2007

A 27-year-old man described as one of the world's most prolific spammers has
been arrested in the US. US authorities say users worldwide have already
noticed a drop in junk email volume. US federal authorities said computer
users across the web could notice a decrease in the amount of junk email.

Robert Alan Soloway is accused of using networks of compromised "zombie"
computers to send out millions upon millions of spam emails. "He's one of
the top 10 spammers in the world," said Tim Cranton, a Microsoft lawyer who
is senior director of the company's Worldwide internet Safety Programs.
"He's a huge problem for our customers. This is a very good day."

A federal grand jury last week returned a 35-count indictment against Mr
Soloway charging him with mail fraud, wire fraud, email fraud, aggravated
identity theft and money laundering.

Mr Soloway pleaded not guilty Wednesday afternoon to all charges after a
judge determined that - even with four bank accounts seized by the
government - he was sufficiently well off to pay for his own lawyer. Mr
Soloway had been living in a ritzy apartment and drove an expensive
Mercedes-Benz convertible, prosecutor Kathryn Warma said. Prosecutors are
seeking to have him forfeit $US773,000 ($939,000) they say he made from his
business, Newport Internet Marketing Corp.

A public defender who represented him for Wednesday's hearing declined to
comment. Prosecutors said Mr Soloway used computers infected with malicious
code to send out millions of junk emails since 2003

He continued his activities even after Microsoft won a $US7 million civil
judgment against him in 2005 and the operator of a small internet service
provider in Oklahoma won a $US10 million judgment, prosecutors said. US
Attorney Jeff Sullivan said that the case was the first in the US in which
federal prosecutors had used identity theft statutes to prosecute a spammer
for taking over someone else's internet domain. Mr Soloway could face
decades in prison, though prosecutors said they have not calculated what
guideline sentencing range he might face.

The investigation began when the authorities began receiving hundreds of
complaints about Mr Soloway, who had been featured on a list of known
spammers kept by The Spamhaus Project, an international anti-spam
organisation.

The Santa Barbara County, California Department of Social Services said it
was spending $US1,000 a week to fight the spam it was receiving, and other
businesses and individuals complained of having their reputations damaged
when it appeared spam was originating from their computers.

"This is not just a nuisance. This is way beyond a nuisance," Ms Warma said.
Mr Soloway used the networks of compromised computers to send out
unsolicited bulk emails urging people to use his internet marketing company
to advertise their products, authorities alleged.

People who clicked on a link in the email were directed to his website.
There, Mr Soloway advertised his ability to send out as many as 20 million
email advertisements over 15 days for $US495, the indictment said.

The Spamhaus Project rejoiced at his arrest. "Soloway has been a long-term
nuisance on the internet - both in terms of the spam he sent, and the people
he duped to use his spam service," its organizers wrote on Spamhaus.org.

Mr Soloway remained in federal detention pending a hearing on Monday.