Cyber Promotions Finally Chokes On Its Own Spam.PASADENA, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--March 30, 1998-- EarthLink Wins $2 Million Consent Judgment in Lawsuit and Sets an Important Precedent in the War Against Mass Unsolicited Email EarthLink Network Inc. (Nasdaq:ELNK ELNK EarthLink, Inc. (stock symbol) ELNK Ethernet Link ) Monday announced that it received a $2 million consent judgment in its suit against infamous spammer Cyber Promotions A Philadelphia-based company that specialized in mass mailings of unsolicited commercial e-mail (spam). Founder Sanford Wallace proudly called himself the "King of Spam." The company sent out millions of e-mail advertisements daily and seemed to be enjoying a thriving business until Inc. and its founder, Sanford Wallace Sanford "Spamford" Wallace is a spammer who came to notoriety in 1997, promoting himself as the original Spam King. Career In the late 1990s, his company, Cyber Promotions, aka Cyberpromo, was widely blacklisted as a source of unsolicited email. . The decision also prohibits Cyber Promotions and Wallace from engaging in a comprehensive list of spam-related activities in the future. The victory against Cyber Promotions is the latest in a long string of anti-spam actions taken by EarthLink. EarthLink declared all-out war on spam in April 1997 and has since launched several initiatives to keep unwanted junk email from filling its members' email boxes and clogging its servers. These include taking legal action, implementing hardware and software deterrents, and co-founding an ISP-industry coalition, ISPSEC, to deal with the problem. According to according to prep. 1. As stated or indicated by; on the authority of: according to historians. 2. In keeping with: according to instructions. 3. the consent judgment, Cyber Promotions is liable for $2 million as a result of its trespass upon EarthLink's computer resources. Wallace will also write a formal letter of apology to EarthLink and all its members for any inconvenience he or his clients may have caused. In addition, EarthLink can collect $1 million from Wallace personally if he ever engages in any of a comprehensive list of prohibited actions in the future, including spamming EarthLink members or enabling anyone else to spam them, distributing EarthLink member email addresses, further trespassing on EarthLink's servers, spoofing messages to look like they came from EarthLink and cloaking messages to EarthLink members to disguise their origin, among other infractions. "I can't tell you how happy I am to be rid of one of the Internet's most notorious spammers," said Garry Betty Charles Garrett "Garry" Betty (4 March 1957 – 2 January 2007) was President and CEO of EarthLink, a large American Internet service provider, from 1996 until his death. Betty was born in Huntsville, Alabama and grew up in Columbus, Georgia. , president and chief executive officer of EarthLink Network. "The most important benefit of this judgment is the message we've sent to spammers that illegally tap our resources and clog up the Internet with this trash -- we won't stand for it. On top of that, now they'll pay a very real penalty." In addition to its suit against Cyber Promotions, EarthLink has assumed an aggressive stance in the fight against spam with the following actions: -- Implementing a "charge and cancel" policy, which charges spammers $200 before canceling their Internet access See how to access the Internet. account -- Issuing cease and desist orders An order issued by an Administrative Agency or a court proscribing a person or a business entity from continuing a particular course of conduct. The force and effect of a cease and desist order are similar to those of an Injunction issued by a court. to numerous other known spammers -- Discontinuing the acceptance of third-party mail relays and implementing other hardware and software deterrents -- Becoming a charter member of ISPSEC, an industry coalition that addresses spam and network security issues -- Hiring renowned network security expert Dan Farmer, co-author of SATAN and COPS software, and adding five dedicated staff members -- Maintaining a comprehensive spam information resource Web site at www.earthlink.net/spam and establishing a new spam hotline at 888-ELN-SPAM "EarthLink has been very aggressive in its crusade against unsolicited junk email, and today we saw the payoff for that aggressiveness," said Paul F.(Pete) Wellborn well·born adj. Of good lineage or stock. Adj. 1. wellborn - of good or upper-class lineage; "a rich and wellborn husband" upper-class - occupying the highest socioeconomic position in a society , III, EarthLink's lead litigator lit·i·gate v. lit·i·gat·ed, lit·i·gat·ing, lit·i·gates v.tr. To contest in legal proceedings. v.intr. To engage in legal proceedings. from Atlanta-based Hunton & Williams. "This judgment not only puts one of the most notorious offenders in dire financial straits, it also paves the way for future litigation An action brought in court to enforce a particular right. The act or process of bringing a lawsuit in and of itself; a judicial contest; any dispute. When a person begins a civil lawsuit, the person enters into a process called litigation. against spammers." For more information on spam, and how to avoid it, call 888-ELN-SPAM or visit www.earthlink.net/spam. For more information on EarthLink and its award-winning line of products and services, call 800-395-8425 or visit www.earthlink.net. About EarthLink Network EarthLink Network is the world's largest independent Internet service provider Internet service provider (ISP) Company that provides Internet connections and services to individuals and organizations. For a monthly fee, ISPs provide computer users with a connection to their site (see data transmission), as well as a log-in name and password. . Through a full range of innovative access and hosting services, the company makes the Internet relevant and productive to hundreds of thousands of individuals and businesses every day. Headquartered in Pasadena, EarthLink provides local access to thousands of communities from more than 1,115 POPs in North America North America, third largest continent (1990 est. pop. 365,000,000), c.9,400,000 sq mi (24,346,000 sq km), the northern of the two continents of the Western Hemisphere. and 42 internationally. Additional service and pricing information is available by calling 800/395-8425 and through EarthLink's Web site at http://www.earthlink.net. CONTACT: EarthLink Network Inc., Pasadena Kirsten Kappos/Kurt Rahn, 626/296-2400 kirsten@earthlink.net kurtrahn@earthlink.net or Manning Selvage & Lee Leasa Vignale/Ann Backowski, 213/782-6600 lvignale@mslpr.com abackows@mslpr.com |
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