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Europe's War on E-Mail Spam Claims First Scalps

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By Bernhard Warner, European Internet Correspondent
LONDON (Reuters) - E-mail spammers take heed: Europeans are finally winning legal tussles against digital peddlers of get-rich-quick schemes, sexual aids and pornography.

Some of the world's biggest e-mail providers, including Microsoft Corp and Time Warner's AOL Internet unit have begun to build cases against spammers from a mountain of consumer complaints -- and scoring legal victories.

In December, a German court ordered three companies to stop sending pornographic e-mails to Microsoft's Hotmail users. And a French court recently issued a cease and desist order on a man who admitted sending 150,000 e-mail offers for an "electric-pliant scooter" to AOL and Hotmail users.

The trickle of successful prosecutions isn't likely to end the flow of unsolicited e-mails any time soon, spam fighters point out, but it does offer consumers some hope that justice is at hand.

"Spam is very high on the agenda of most governments. It is a difficult matter to tackle, but we are seeing some progress on this front," said Beatrice Belmas, director of legal and corporate affairs for Microsoft in Europe.

SPAM JUSTICE

In the United States, where the legal crackdown started years earlier, dozens of courts across the country have fined spammers and ordered them to cease their activities.

Now, more cases are pending across Europe including in Denmark and Sweden, Microsoft and AOL say.

The legal clampdown is occurring at a point when the daily flow of spam has surpassed legitimate e-mail.

And, police suspect, organized crime gangs are using spamming tactics to defraud online banking customers out of their passwords and banking details or spread computer viruses capable of taking over people's PCs. "What needs to be done is to fight spam on all fronts, including bringing the big spammers to justice, and Europe is willing to cooperate," said Eric Walter, who heads anti-spam efforts for the French Prime Ministry.

France's consumer protection council CNIL has begun working with U.S. government agencies, including the Federal Trade Commission, to track down the biggest international spammers.

SPAM LAW BACKLOG

Many believe international cooperation, and perhaps multi-national treaties, will be needed to stop the global spam flow.

But before prosecutors can expect the big international collar, there are still legal snags in Europe. Last week, the European Commission (news - web sites) threatened to take eight member nations, including Belgium, France and Germany, to the European Court of Justice for failing to implement the EU privacy directive -- a broad law that criminalizes the distribution of e-mail to users without their permission.

Spam fighters would like to see new laws include hefty fines and jail time for repeat offenders.

"The problem with fines is that you are dealing with fraudsters. They have no intention of paying," said Steve Linford, founder of British-based spam-fighting group The Spamhaus Project.

Another obstacle is the courts themselves. Spam cases are new territory for judges and prosecutors.

"We have gone to court only to find that judges have never used the Internet before. It's an education we do on the spot. But they are really very interested," said Microsoft's Belmas.

Still, the world's biggest e-mail providers continue to invest heavily in an anti-spam effort that includes both new technological remedies and lawsuits.

"We cannot wait. Our goal is to do as much as necessary to significantly reduce the pain," she added.

April 6, 2004 at 01:57 PM in Spam | Permalink | TrackBack (22) | Top of page | Blog Home