Slashdot Mirror
Spammer Gets Spam Mailed
ssblood noted a story about a spammer getting what he deserves as well as a related story
from the Register.
Essentially the virtual spammer is capable of sending a billion emails a day, and is getting sacks of physical junk mail from irritable folks. Apparently part of this plot was hatched on familiar turf too.
John Poindexter is also getting a taste of his own medicine. Check out this article. They've got his address and everything.
I know this story is a dupe. The slashdot editors have re-posted the old story, instead of posting the newly submitted follow-up story to this one...
*sigh*
Why re-post old news when there's new news available? Interesting new news, as a matter-of-fact. See:
http://www.freep.com/money/tech/mwend13_20021213.h tm
Suff That Matters, eh? Right.
If you haven't already heard...
Taken from http://www.spamhaus.org
found here
Alan M. Ralsky
Telephone: 248-926-0688
Current email address: amr777@comcast.net
Address : 6747 MINNOW POND DR Property ID: 18-31-177-002
City/State/Zip: W BLOOMFIELD MI 48322-2663
Owner Name : RALSKY ALAN M Latitude : 42.5460
Taxpayer Addr.: 6747 MINNOW POND DR Longitude : 83.4284
City/State/zip: W BLOOMFIELD MI 48322-2663 Census Tract: 1566.00
Block Group : 9
City/Vill/Twn : WEST BLOOMFIELD
Subdivision : BLOOMFIELD PINES SUB NO 2
School Dist : WALLED LAKE CONSOLIDATED SCHOOLS
Prop Category : RESIDENTIAL
Land Use : SI SUBURBAN IMPROVED, TOWNSHIP ONLY
"In a Democracy, people get the kind of government they deserve." -Winston Churchill
Please forward questions, complaints, and replies to:
ALAN M RALSKY
6747 MINNOW POND DR,
WEST BLOOMFIELD, MI 48322
Seller: BING CONSTRUCTION CO
Property Address: 6747 MINNOW POND DR, WEST BLOOMFIELD, MI 48322
Sale Date: 8/28/2002
Recorded Date: 9/12/2002
Sale Price: $ 740,000
I think the best thing to do is to bounce it back to the spammer. I know that both KDE's Kmail and MacOS X's mail.app have this feature.
Essentially, it's better than replying. Not only does it go back to where it came, but it also looks like your email address is invalid, potentially removing it from spammer's lists. (Kind of like the Telezapper works for telespammers...)
Yes, there was an update:
Free Press article:
MIKE WENDLAND: Behind the scenes, spam's even uglier
December 13, 2002
Bloomfield Township spam artist Alan Ralsky is in the midst of yet another controversy, this time involving an anti-spam activist who says someone left him threatening telephone messages after he took photos of Ralsky's brand-new $740,000 house.
The activist, Rich Clark of Warren, said he's reported the threats -- which were left on his answering machine -- to police. He said it all started last weekend when he drove to Ralsky's neighborhood to snap some photos for an anti-spam Web site.
Clark said as he was taking his pictures from the street, someone left Ralsky's house, got into a black car and tried to block him from driving away. Clark said he maneuvered around the vehicle, but was followed.
The next day, the phone calls started.
"You don't know who the hell you were . . . with yesterday," began the first call. "You got the wrong guy. You don't even have the guy you think you do."
The caller then gave details about Clark's home, his driver's license number, even the bank his car was financed through.
A second call said: "I'm going to make your life so miserable you should watch every corner you go into, bro, every second."
The next day, there was still another message. "Just waiting for you," it said. "You haven't heard the beginning of what's going to happen to you yet. Keep your eyes open."
Clark provided me copies of the recordings. Are they from Ralsky? It was hard for me to tell. I asked Ralsky, and he said he knows nothing about it.
"Come on," said Ralsky, "That's ludicrous. I'm not that stupid."
He said he had no idea who was in the black car that Clark said left his driveway. "I don't have a black car," he said. "And I'm 57. I'm not about to go chasing anyone. But what was that guy doing taking pictures of my house for, anyway?"
Clark says he took the pictures to post on an anti-spam Web site (he hasn't decided which one). He now plans to add the audio files from the phone messages.
Warren police said Clark's report is on file, but there is no investigation in progress.
Ralsky, who is one of the biggest senders of unsolicited bulk e-mail in the world, says anti-spammers have been harassing him for the past year. Lately, said Ralsky, anti-spammers started flooding him by snail mail with coupons, brochures and ads. "I just toss them right into the wastebasket," he said. "It doesn't bother me."
You might also want to check the following Usenet thread in news.admin.net-abuse.email:
Google News
which includes links to mp3s of the threats left on his answering machine.
Come to the University of Mars! Classes starting soon!
We don't like direct marketers, but we should have the least amount of venom for the The Direct Marketers Association. They maintain legitimate opt-out lists for email, telephone, and junk mail. Not every "marketer" uese 'em, but those that do use the lists only use them to opt customers out.
If it reduces just some of the harassment, isn't it worth it?
Less junk mail
Fewer telemarketers
Less spam
And BTW: don't be lazy and use the $5 Internet option. Print out the page and pop it in the post for less than 10% of the cost.
Support a few technologists in Washington.