President Bush signed legislation Tuesday meant to stem the flood of unwanted e-mail pitches that irritate Internet users and drain the economy.
"Spam, or unsolicited e-mails, are annoying to consumers and costly to our economy," White House spokesman Scott McClellan said after Bush signed the bill. "This will help address the problems associated with the rapid growth and abuse of spam by establishing a framework of technological, administrative civil and criminal tools, and by providing consumers with options to reduce the volume of unwanted e-mail."
Virginia authorities Thursday charged two Triangle men with the first-ever felony counts for flooding the world's e-mail in boxes with unwanted solicitations.
Jeremy D. Jaynes, 29, of Raleigh was arrested on four counts of using fraudulent means to transmit unwanted bulk e-mail, also known as spam, the Virginia attorney general said. Jaynes, ranked as the world's eighth-biggest spammer by a spam- monitoring group, was released from the Wake County jail Thursday afternoon after posting $100,000 bail.
Richard Rutowski of Cary was named a co-conspirator and charged with four identical felony counts, said Tim Murtaugh, a spokesman for the attorney general. Officials issued a warrant for his arrest, Murtaugh said.
Virginia law enforcement, aided by Internet service providers including America Online, began investigating the men in August, a month after a tough antispamming law took effect in the state.
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Best New Blog finalist - 2003 Koufax Awards
A non-violent, counter-dominant, left-liberal, possibly charismatic, quasi anarcho-libertarian Quaker's take on politics, volleyball, and other esoterica.
Lo alecha ha-m'lacha ligmor, v'lo atah ben chorin l'hibateyl mimenah.
Cairo wonders when I'll be fair
and balanced and go throw sticks...