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Spammers Sue Spam Victim For $4 Million

Posted by Zonk on from the that's-a-lot-of-pork dept.

fronck writes "Self-declared anti-spammer Mark Mumma, a web hosting and email service provider, has apparently been sued for just under $4 million by cruise.com and their parent company Omega World Travel after they were ordered to stop sending him emails and comply with Oklahoma's CAN-SPAM act. Mumma intends to see the trial through court and meanwhile the spam continues unabated. More insight available at Ars Technica."

4 of 435 comments (clear)

  1. Wow, just wow. by Qzukk · · Score: 5, Interesting

    The judge will hopefully smack this one down. If the company doesn't like the CAN-SPAM act, they should appeal whatever case they lost against it, not go and sue the guy who reported them to the cops.

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    1. Re:Wow, just wow. by jebell · · Score: 5, Interesting

      I think the spammers made a big mistake filing it in the Eastern District of Virginia. The judges in that particular district are known for not taking crap from attorneys. In fact, the trial docket is known as the "rocket docket." No continuances will be granted without a very good reason and the litigants are stuck with a very strict schedule. The motion to dismiss has a better shot at success there than a number of other federal courts.

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  2. We need to knock them off their horse by FunWithHeadlines · · Score: 5, Interesting
    " "It simply filed a lawsuit in a court that it knew had no jurisdictional authority what-so-ever," Mumma explained. "Today's spammer tends to think it will escape prosecution because they've never been prosecuted. It has a false sense of security because nobody has come along and legally knocked it off its high horse."

    A common tactic nowadays. Take someone to court even on a frivolous charge, knowing they can't afford to play the legal game. This works until someone takes the bluff and says, "OK, buddy, I'll see you in court and I intend to make you lose, and lose badly." For that you need a deep-heeled "victim," precisely the type that tends not to get sued in these sort of situations.

    But every now and then a bully miscalculates, as we saw with SCO versus IBM. So what we need is for someone with bucks to take on these spamming sleazes, point out they are misusing the law with these abusive lawsuits, and knock them off their high horse.

  3. Will there be another win or a first defeat? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 5, Interesting

    Interesting stuff at the very end of the emediawire article.

    Copied:

    SUEaSpammer.com and SUEDbySPAMMERS.com are trademarks of MummaGraphics, Inc. Cruise.com is a registered trademark of Omega World Travel, Inc.

    MummaGraphics, Inc., founded in 1993, is a provider of Internet web hosting and web site design services and has begun directing its energies to curbing unwanted junk email, a/k/a. spam. MummaGraphics began suing spammers in August 2004 and intends to file several more lawsuits in the future. MummaGraphics, Inc. is currently undefeated in court.