Federal Bust Weakens Spam Juggernaut

If everyone absolutely abhors having their in-boxes larded with spam, then why is it still such a widespread practice? I could ask the same question about door-to-door salesmen (admittedly a dying breed), certain religious groups and telemarketers, but I digress.

It's still a cheap and efficient way to find just those few gullible folks willing to buy cheap meds or pay for some, uh, adult entertainment. It is technically illegal to blast unsolicited emails to the masses. And a recent police bust reportedly trimmed the volume of spam by nearly one-sixth practically overnight.

Internet and email security company Marshal8e6 just reported on its website that spam traffic declined by 15 percent in the wake of a Federal Trade Commission takedown of "rogue ISP" Pricewert LLC last week. Those with extra time on their hands might be interested in digging through the FTC's court documents, especially one detailing email conversations between Pricewert employees and customers (spammers).

According to an FTC press release, Pricewert was accomplice to the misdeeds of some really bad apples:

Pricewert LLC, which does business under a variety of names including 3FN and APS Telecom, actively recruits and colludes with criminals seeking to distribute illegal, malicious, and harmful electronic content including child pornography, spyware, viruses, trojan horses, phishing, botnet command and control servers, and pornography featuring violence, bestiality, and incest.

Yikes.

On behalf of everyone who dislikes spammers, and even those silent few who actually entertain their salacious, unsolicited offers (of bestiality?!), let's raise a glass to this small victory.