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Spammers Sue Spamee

Posted by samzenpus on from the read-it-or-else dept.

sebFlyte writes "In an interesting take on the law, some (alleged) spammers are suing some poor chap who got them blocked by ISPs due to the fact they kept sending him spam. According to Spamhaus the company doing the suing is on their books as spammer, and also as a spyware company... If this case goes the wrong way, things could get very sticky for anyone wanting to report spam."

13 of 453 comments (clear)

  1. Can Spam Act as defense by fembots · · Score: 5, Insightful

    This is a serious problem. Lawyers/spammers are now citing CSA, and as long as they're following that ACT, it will be legal.

    However, it doesn't matter if spamming is legal or otherwise, this is just another example of rich people's law.

    If this spammer is doing reasonably well, he might just have enough money to drag on. This will have a big impact on the victims, because even if you're rightfully entitled to complain about a spammer, you would now have a second thought if you have enough money to defend yourself for few months, even if the outcome is in your favour.

    On a side note, the spamee, Jay Stuler is appealing for help from the public in fighting the suit and has set up a PayPal account to pay for his legal fees and is asking for donations. Maybe a bit of "email campaign" asking recipients to donate $5 and pass the email to 5 friends? :)

    --
    Rock that crushes, Paper & Scissors that don't matter.
    1. Re:Can Spam Act as defense by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 5, Funny

      It's called "can" spam for a reason.

    2. Re:Can Spam Act as defense by tha_mink · · Score: 5, Interesting

      This is a serious problem. Lawyers/spammers are now citing CSA, and as long as they're following that ACT, it will be legal.

      But really, all this guy did was complain to his ISP. You cannot get sued for complaining. If there is a lawsuit, it should be against the ISP for canceling the account. No? Seems like a million lawyers would jump at a countersuit on this one.

      --
      You'll have that sometimes...
    3. Re:Can Spam Act as defense by KiltedKnight · · Score: 5, Insightful
      If you can't lose, you should move immediately for the case to be dismissed as a frivolous lawsuit. If you have a reasonably wise and intelligent judge hearing the case, he'll look at it, agree, and throw it out. The judge would then warn the lawyer about bringing up frivolous lawsuits, potentially fining him for doing so.

      Perhaps he should look for a way to counter-sue on those grounds. He followed the law, made a simple request based on the TOS of the ISP, and he's being harassed with a frivolous lawsuit intended to seek damages for something he is not liable for.

      --
      OCO is Loco
    4. Re:Can Spam Act as defense by tool462 · · Score: 5, Funny
      Maybe a bit of "email campaign" asking recipients to donate $5 and pass the email to 5 friends? :)
      Thanks for this. Somebody recently asked me for a good example of "irony," but I couldn't think of one at the time ;)
    5. Re:Can Spam Act as defense by The+Ultimate+Fartkno · · Score: 5, Funny

      I can go you one better...

      One drunken evening a year or so ago I absolutely lost my cool when I came home to a deluge of spam that was bigger than I had ever seen. After dutifully reporting each and every one of them to Spamcop I stumbled across one particular email that was sent by/for a business that was stupid enough to use their 800# in the body of the mail. My evil mind went to work, and after a few minutes of scripting in my head the following conversation (as far as I can remember it) ensued.

      [ring ring]

      Thank you for calling XXX, my name is Kathy, how can I help you? Me: (using the biggest, dumbest, drive-time DJ voice I can muster): KATHY! HOW ARE YOU?! You're lucky listener number 20 tonight! Are you feeling lucky? Are you?

      K: Wha...? Who is th- DJ: Kathy! You listen to Brian and Bob in the mornings on Z-101, right? K: Umm... yeah! (Who's gonna get a call like that and say no, hm?) DJ: So here's the story Kathy - we got your name from some of your co-workers and entered it into our big contest drawing this month, and...

      (uncomfortably long pause...)

      K: And wha-? DJ: AND YOUR NAME CAME UP IN OUR 80'S ROCK TRIVIA CHALLENGE, KATHY! ARE YOU EXCITED?! K: Oh yeah, what are we-? DJ: Kathy? K: Yeah?

      DJ: ARE YOU READY TO WIN $50,000 DOLLARS?!

      (pause)

      K: ARE YOU SERIOU-? DJ: We're ABSOLUTELY serious, Kathy! You are exactly ONE question away from winning FIFTY THOUSAND DOLLARS!

      (at this point, I knew I had her. I could hear her cup the phone with her hand and start yelling at what had to be an entire office full of people.)

      DJ: Kathy? Are you ready? Get the men and women at work with you to help out!

      K: Sure!

      (she was hyperventilating at this point)

      DJ: Kathy, here's what we want to know...

      (another uncomfortable pause)

      DJ: For fifty thousand dollars...

      (yet another pause, during which I heard the sound of ten different computers firing up Google in anticipation...)

      DJ: What one-hit-wonder from the mid-80's was notable for their lead singer's visible physical deformity?!

      (sheer, dead silence for a moment that lasted forever)

      K: What WHAT?

      DJ: TEN SECONDS!!

      (at this point, she freaked. she tried to cover the phone and missed, and as I loudly counted down from ten to one I heard an entire office simultaneously melt down. "One-hit WHAT?! DEFORMITY? WHAT THE...!?"

      DJ: THREE! TWO!

      K: OH MY G-!

      DJ: ONE! OH, NO! You JUST missed it, Kathy! Fifty thousand dollars, and you JUST didn't get it. It's too bad, too - I gave you SUCH a hint!

      K: You WHAT? Hint? WHAT TH-?

      DJ: Oh, Kathy - I practically gave it to you. I told you to get some help from the women... and MEN AT WORK! It was Men at Work, and you must be feeling really stupid right now not remembering Colin Hay and that freaky wandering eyeball he has! Remember that eye? Of course you do! You must be feeling so stupid right now!

      (at this point my roommate, who's been watching the entire affair in bugeyed amazement, chimes in with "So FUCKING stupid!!" loud enough for her to hear it. I nearly had an aneurysm...)

      DJ: Yeah, that was Bob... he calls 'em like he sees 'em. How you feeling, Kathy?

      (it's at this point that I'm pretty sure I earned myself a warm spot in Hell, because she sounded like she was about to be sick...)

      K: Oh God, I was so c...

      (and if I wasn't going to Hell yet...)

      DJ: But don't forget, Kathy - there's only one other person on our mega prize list today, and if they miss the Trivia Challenge question too, the money is YOURS!!

      K: Are you SERIOUS?!

      DJ: I'm DEAD serious, Kathy! Before the day is out you just might have that money! But remember, you have to get to the phone within two rings - so stay close to the phone and answer with our slogan! "Brian and Bob rock me HARD!" Can you do it now?

      K: Bri... um, Brian and Bob rock me HARD!!

      DJ: Excellent, Kathy! So remember, a

  2. The Spammer Strikes Back by IO+ERROR · · Score: 5, Funny
    SPAM
    WARS

    Episode V

    The Spammer Strikes Back

    It is a dark time for the Internet. Although Spamford Wallace has been shut down, Atriks spammers have driven the irate users from their inboxes and pursued them into court.

    Evading the dreaded Distributed Mail Corporation, a group of freedom fighters led by Jay Stuler has established a new secret base on the remote ice world of Ohio.

    The evil lord Darth Haberstroh, obsessed with harassing young Stuler, has dispatched thousands of spambots into the far reaches of the Internet...

    --
    How am I supposed to fit a pithy, relevant quote into 120 characters?
  3. Does this case hold? by oskard · · Score: 5, Insightful

    If anything, they should sue the ISP, not the individual. Props to the ISP though for listening to the guy.

    --
    Sigs are for Terrorists.
  4. ...wait...what?! by Dixie+Flatliner · · Score: 5, Funny

    Damn, I better take that No Junk Mail sticker off my mailbox. I hear the Post Office has some mean ass lawyers.

  5. Vital Data for Your Spamming Company by dondelelcaro · · Score: 5, Informative
    Just a quick look through the atriks (yes, they're "at risk") website shows a number of interesting "products".

    My personal favorite, the "Atriks Personal Domain Owners with Credit Cards" Database.
    7,000,000+ consumers have registered a domain for their own personal use and have created Web sites that share everything from jokes to family pictures. A key part of their registration is supplying credit card information, resulting in a file with all major credit card selects available.
    Unless you've been sleeping for the past 10 years, this means harvesting whois records (against the ToS) and using them to spam people. SpamHaus tidbits.
    --
    http://www.donarmstrong.com
  6. paypal link... by St.+Arbirix · · Score: 5, Informative

    This guy is a Computer Science and Engineering undergrad at Ohio State. It's wonderful that he could have influenced so much power over these people but I'm willing to bet he doesn't have much money otherwise.

    Here's his site with the paypal link. There's some other goodies about the lawsuit and him on the site.

    --
    Direct away from face when opening.
  7. Old fashion way by future+assassin · · Score: 5, Interesting

    Get spam and lose your mind
    Get spammer banned/blocked
    Get spammer to sue you
    Get spammers personal info from law suit

    Spammer found sleeping with fishes.

    You win case as your alibi is that you were too busy removing spam from your inbox to do anything that smart.

    --
    by TheSpoom (715771) Uncaring Linux user here. I have nothing to add to this but please continue. *munches popcorn*
  8. It has happened before by Duc+de+Montebello · · Score: 5, Informative

    In 2002, in Australia, a spammer tried to sue the guy who reported them to the SPEWS blacklist. Case was dismissed, see the result here:

    http://www.heraldsun.news.com.au/common/story_page /0,5478,5284073%255E421,00.html

    and

    http://t3-v-mcnicol.org/
    --
    "If we hit that bullseye, the rest of the dominoes should fall like a house of cards. Checkmate." - Zapp Brannigan