Alan Ralsky IndictedHappy New Year, Internet ( old news - 09:08AM Friday Jan 04 2008) tags: legal · business · spamMichigan spam king Alan Ralsky has been indicted in Detroit on charges of violating federal anti-spam laws. Ralsky has been one of the Internet's most prolific spammers, becoming truly hated after he bragged of his riches to the press in 2002. Ralsky, along with his son-in-law and nine others, were sending stock spam that suggested recipients invest in largely worthless Chinese companies. Ralsky and company then quickly sold the stocks (yes, people still apparently take investment advice from spam). A list of other collaborators: Judy Devenow, 55 of Lansing; James Bragg, 39, of Queen Creek, Ariz.; Peter Severa, age unknown, of Russia, and How Wai John Hui, 40, of Vancouver, Canada and Hong Kong. Several California residents were charged: John Brown, 47 of Poway; William Neil, 45 and Anki Neil, 36, both of Fresno; James Fite, 34, of Whittier, and Francis Tribble of Los Angeles. The most serious charge Ralsky faces is mail and wire fraud, which would carry a maximum penalty of 20 years in prison and a $250,000 fine. "The FBI and U.S. Attorney’s Office couldn’t have given Internet users a better New Year’s present," says Steve Linford of Spamhaus.
Related:- Users Actually Read Qwest's TOS
- Project Honeypot Launches Massive Anti-Spam Lawsuit
- $11 Million Spamhaus Penalty Tossed
- Spam King Faces 26 Years In Jail
- NebuAD Hit Hard By PR Disaster
- Man Sues Time Warner For Having To Rent Cable Box
- Network Neutrality Sock Puppets For Hire
- RIAA Finally Pays Oregon Mom $108,000
|
 |  | 
Wills
join:2001-01-03
Port Charlotte, FL
| Re: Pyrrhic Defeat The war on spam is lost because it's being fought improperly. We aren't following the money and we aren't going after the head companies that are the end of the money train.
Ralsky doesn't make money sending spam for Norton Antivirus, Norton does. That's who we should be going after.
Just like every "War on X" the U.S. has waged, it will be a losing fight because we'll always do it wrong.
--
I have a shaved head, a goatee, and tatoos. Don't you realize the rules don't apply to me. | |
| | | 
pnh102
Reptiles Are Cuddly And Pretty
Premium
join:2002-05-02
Mount Airy, MD
 ·Comcast
| Re: Pyrrhic Defeat said by Wills  :The war on spam is lost because it's being fought improperly. Aside from shooting people who spam as well as people who buy spamvertised products and services, what else can we do?
--
Only SHATNER is Kirk. | |
| | | |
Wills
join:2001-01-03
Port Charlotte, FL
| Re: Pyrrhic Defeat Like I said, go after the companies that are the end of the money train.
Aside from phising, most spam is trying to sell you a product. Some company is benefitting from that and is the root cause of that.
THESE are the people we should be levying multimillion dollar fines and jail time at. Not people like Ralsky. Stop the companies doing this and there is no need for people like Ralsky.
Kill the head and the body dies.
--
I have a shaved head, a goatee, and tatoos. Don't you realize the rules don't apply to me. | |
| | | | |
pnh102
Reptiles Are Cuddly And Pretty
Premium
join:2002-05-02
Mount Airy, MD
·Comcast
| Re: Pyrrhic Defeat said by Wills :Like I said, go after the companies that are the end of the money train. Perhaps I am not understanding you. Are you suggesting that companies which make commercially available anti-spam solutions are part of the problem? Granted... I might need more coffee.
said by Wills :THESE are the people we should be levying multimillion dollar fines and jail time at. Not people like Ralsky. Stop the companies doing this and there is no need for people like Ralsky. Ralsky runs a huge business that makes its money by sending spam. He deserves to be taken down.
said by Wills :Kill the head and the body dies. Unfortunately, even if Ralksy is convicted and imprisoned, other spammers will quickly fill the void. I still believe that the volume of spam continues to increase because more people buy products and services that are spamvertised. Until everyone stops buying such products and services, we will never see an appreciable decrease in spam.
--
Only SHATNER is Kirk. | |
| | | | | | 
N10Cities
Is it quittin' time yet?
join:2002-05-07
Podunk, AR
clubs:
edit:
January 4th, @09:38AM
| Re: Pyrrhic Defeat Wills is saying go after the makers of the product that the spam is ADVERTISING.... | |
| | | | | | |
pnh102
Reptiles Are Cuddly And Pretty
Premium
join:2002-05-02
Mount Airy, MD
·Comcast
| Re: Pyrrhic Defeat said by N10Cities :Wills is saying go after the makers of the product that the spam is ADVERTISING.... I told you I need more coffee!
--
Only SHATNER is Kirk. | |
| | | | | | | | 
N3OGH
They both suck, we're so screwed
Premium
join:2003-11-11
Philly burbs
 ·Verizon Online DSL
| Re: Pyrrhic Defeat What makes Viagra Coffee the # 1 potency pill?
Viagra coffee ensures Better Performance, Improved Erection Quality and enhanced Hardness.
No tablet has been proven to work better or faster for ED than Viagra coffee.
Success rate is phenomenal: VIAGRA coffee works for 4 out of 5 men.
16 million men worldwide have chosen Viagra coffee to treat ED.
Every second 9 pills cups are bought.
Viagra coffee is so safe that it can be taken once daily.
Viagra is covered by more health plans than other oral ED treatments.
Buy Viagra coffee Now!
There, now I bet you HAVE to buy a cup of coffee!
taken from an actual piece of spam I got. They're definitely targeting the wrong guy. I have about an hour of morning wood a day, but I digress 
--
Petty people are disproportionably corrupted by petty power… | |
| | | | | | | | |
pnh102
Reptiles Are Cuddly And Pretty
Premium
join:2002-05-02
Mount Airy, MD
·Comcast
| Re: Pyrrhic Defeat said by N3OGH :There, now I bet you HAVE to buy a cup of coffee! We get free viagra coffee at work!
--
Only SHATNER is Kirk. | |
| | | | | | | | | | 
Noah Vail
Serial Thread Killer
Premium
join:2004-12-10
Lorton, VA
 ·Verizon BroadbandA..
 ·VoicePulse
| But I don't drink coffee! AND I have 5 children.
I'm so confused. I need a hug.
Maybe not from my trophy wife, that'd just be like more coffee, or... No wait.
crap.
never mind.
NV
--
My children used to Speak in Tongues. But after years of Speech Therapy, English is their First Language! | |
| | | | | jvanbrecht
join:2007-01-08
Bowie, MD
| You appear to have some understanding of how spam works, but are incorrect in the assumption that it is all the fault of the products being advertised.
Here is the issue. Most companies offer an affiliate program, where by you sell the product, or get a user to connect to the products site (I am not talking advertising clickthru sites, more like, to use your example, www.symantec.com/blah/affiliate_id=34235 where the user with id 34235 gets a small chunk of change everytime someone clicks it and even more when a user purchases the product). Of course, this assumes that they (spammers/nefarious affiliate user) are selling legal versions, and not chinese fakes of the same product, which most spam does.
Now these affiliate programs are fine, if they are run correctly. In the past, atleast at UUNET (prior to MCI and Verizons involvement), we took down the spammer (if it originated from a UUNET pop, or notified the downstream customers if it was one of their users, if they do not respond, after numerous notifications and a discussion with UUNETs legal dep, that customer would have its line shut down, and yes, we did do it, even though it took a while sometimes). Additionally, we would go after the content of the email, sites advertised etc, and shut those down as well.
With regards to affiliate type deals, we notified the provider of that affiliate service (sometimes the vendor itself, sometimes third parties), and under ideal situations, they cancel that affiliates account and with hold any payments due to them. That worked great with larger companies, not so much with smaller ones who went from ISP to ISP after their accounts got canceled.
Basically, what it comes down to, the majority of spam now days seems to be hocking illegal pharmaceuticals, pirated software, fake products and porn. Now with porn, they actually do cancel affiliate accounts quickly for fear of losing their own access, which has happened, for the others, its illegal content in the first place, and going after Symantec for their spammed Norton AV which is probably a knock off in the first place will not resoilve the problem.
Spam is a complex problem, there is no simple solution... when you come up with a viable one, you will be rich, until then, just suck it up and do your part. | |
| | | | | moonpuppy
join:2000-08-21
Glen Burnie, MD | I have been saying the same thing for years. | |
| | | 
mindfrost82
join:2003-04-19
Cortland, IL
| Spam and product emails are two different things IMO.
With your example of Norton, if an email comes from a company like that, there is usually a legit link to unsubscribe from the mailing list.
Before switching to Google Apps, I ran my company's email server and it was a full time job blocking spam. IMO, the worst spam (which makes up the majority of it), are emails like these stock emails, emails about replica watches, emails that don't make any sense, porn emails, etc.
If an email comes from a large company, they usually provide a way out of their mailing list, which usually works. | |
| | | | 
n2jtx
join:2001-01-13
Glen Head, NY
·Optimum Online
| Re: Pyrrhic Defeat said by mindfrost82 :Before switching to Google Apps, I ran my company's email server and it was a full time job blocking spam. I still run my firms server and yes it is a pain. I was also running my own private email server to host my own personal domains and that too was becoming a full-time job. I finally shifted my MX records to a paid forwarding service that provides SPAM filtering. That service then forwards on to my GMail account that provides another layer of SPAM filtering. Since doing that, managing my personal email has become much easier. Corporate is still annoying but it is manageable, especially with a DeepSix anti-SPAM box in front of it all.
--
I support the right to keep and arm bears. | |
| | | | | 
IT Guy
Your God Smells Funny
join:2004-07-29
Las Cruces, NM
·Comcast
|  Postini
MailBox Cop, despite their promise of no false-positives, was so bad with rejecting valid emails and not creating an incident so that I could add the sender/domain as trusted, that our company may actually be fined some big dollars because an email never made it to the recipient. Why some people put so much trust in e-mail for time-sensitive, important matters is beyond me.
What I did was sign up for Postini's spam filtering service and it has been awesome! I haven't had 1 report of a false positive yet and it allows each individual account holder to take action on messages instead of me going through everyone's email. It's a bit pricey but well worth it. I out Google Apps as well, and if it weren't for the $12,000 annual price tag, I probably would have migrated to them.
--
My time is a piece of wax, falling on a termite, that's choking on a splinter. --Beck | |
| | | | 
Nightfall
My Goal Is To Deny Yours
Premium,MVM
join:2001-08-03
Grand Rapids, MI
clubs:
 ·Site5.com
·AT&T Midwest
·Comcast
| said by mindfrost82 :Spam and product emails are two different things IMO. With your example of Norton, if an email comes from a company like that, there is usually a legit link to unsubscribe from the mailing list. Before switching to Google Apps, I ran my company's email server and it was a full time job blocking spam. IMO, the worst spam (which makes up the majority of it), are emails like these stock emails, emails about replica watches, emails that don't make any sense, porn emails, etc. If an email comes from a large company, they usually provide a way out of their mailing list, which usually works. A full time job blocking spam? Thats nuts. We have postini here and it is IMHO the Cadillac of spam filtering. In over a year and a half of using it, we have had 5 reported false positives in the spam box. Whenever spam does sneak through, I am told about it and that only happened a couple times in the last year.
Sounds like the company you work for is a little cheap cause great services like postini are very inexpensive for the service they provide. | |
| | |
Nightfall
My Goal Is To Deny Yours
Premium,MVM
join:2001-08-03
Grand Rapids, MI
clubs:
·Site5.com
·AT&T Midwest
·Comcast
| said by Wills :The war on spam is lost because it's being fought improperly. We aren't following the money and we aren't going after the head companies that are the end of the money train. Ralsky doesn't make money sending spam for Norton Antivirus, Norton does. That's who we should be going after. Just like every "War on X" the U.S. has waged, it will be a losing fight because we'll always do it wrong. Good luck making that work. I can see a bunch of Microsoft haters spamming advertisements from some Chinese server just to get Microsoft fined. The problem here is the email system itself. It hasn't changed in years and is flawed. A new system must be developed and implemented. Whatever this new system is, it will have to be more restrictive. | |
| | | | rmdir
join:2003-03-13
Chicago, IL
·dock.net
| Re: Pyrrhic Defeat That's why if I work for Kapersky I'll be sending spam for Norton AV. It's much easier to fatally wound the competition that to make a better product. Plus when I get unsolicited e-mail (like the Circuit City cr** they send in addition to my monthly e-mailed bill) I'll make it a point to patronize their competitor to show my disapproval. | |
| | | THoff
join:2004-01-15
Santa Monica, CA
| said by Wills :Ralsky doesn't make money sending spam for Norton Antivirus, Norton does. That's who we should be going after. Has it occurred to you that the spam you are getting that is advertising commercial software like Norton Antivirus may not be coming from Symantec or their respective publishers?
The vast majority of software pushed by spam is fake. If you are offered "OEM" software, a huge discount, software without physical media or a manual, non-upgradeable software etc., it's usually from a East European or Asian scammer. | |
| | | | |
pnh102
Reptiles Are Cuddly And Pretty
Premium
join:2002-05-02
Mount Airy, MD
·Comcast
| Re: Pyrrhic Defeat said by Mactron :Must be a Yahoo e-mail account...  Unfortunately this is a private email account with my own personal domain. My hosting company picks up about 90% of the spam and marks it as such. Maybe I can bug them to improve their filter. I'd rather they delete the spam before I have to deal with it.
--
Only SHATNER is Kirk. | |
| | jvanbrecht
join:2007-01-08
Bowie, MD
| I run my own mail, and while I agree, 99% of what I get is spam, I atleast know where they are getting my email addresses from. ps, I also used to work IT Security (which included spam and abuse) for UUNET (ages ago) and Roadrunner, so I understand the costs involved with dealing with the stuff. | |
| | 
MrMaster
What If
Premium
join:2000-12-16
Austin, TX
clubs:
·RoadRunner Cable
| said by pnh102 :For most people, spam has made email completely useless as a means of communication. Businesses have to invest significant amounts of money into blocking spam just so that email can function at all. I won't be surprised if many people simply stop using email altogether because of the volume of spam. For me, it is about 99% of my personal email. I'm getting ready to just shut off the one email account altogether. The "War on spam" is lost. Since switching to gmail a few years ago I have had virtually no problems with spam. Even my rarely used hotmail account shows a significant drop in spam messages. | |
| | | 
Doctor Four
My other vehicle is a TARDIS
Premium
join:2000-09-05
Dallas, TX | Now if only they could get Leo Kuvayev Otherwise known as Bad Cow.
But Ralsky is a good start. I hope they throw the book
at him. | |
| | 
GTaylor
Premium
join:2002-12-14
Frisco, TX
clubs:
| Re: Now if only they could get Leo Kuvayev said by Doctor Four :Otherwise known as Bad Cow. But Ralsky is a good start. I hope they throw the book at him. I agree, so long as guys like Leo and the Alexs run free spam will be a problem. But it is nice to see Ralsky finally get his comeuppance | |
| | 
Chiyo
Save Me Konata-Chan
Premium
join:2003-02-20
Minneapolis, MN
clubs:
·Comcast
| said by Doctor Four :Otherwise known as Bad Cow. But Ralsky is a good start. I hope they throw the book at him. A book isn't good enough, several books.... Plus a few bricks! | |
| 
wruckman
Ruckman.net
join:2007-10-25
Northwood, OH | Good Riddance I love to see spammers get busted. Getting rich off spreading disease and annoyance. Might as well lock him up with the owner of Sears! | |
| deadzoned
Premium
join:2005-04-13
Baton Rouge, LA
·Cox HSI
| Spam, yuck. I hate spam myself. I use MailWasher Pro and it is pretty effective in catching most of it. Otherwise, I just use a bunch of throw away e-mail accounts from yahoo, gmail, or hotmail.
Seems like an impossible thing to stop though. I guess prosecuting this guy sends some sort of message. It certainly does nothing to curb spam though. | |
| GroovyPhoenx
join:2006-05-22
Gloucester, ON
·Rogers Hi-Speed
| Spammer indiicted? The problem is that there is also a lack of understanding at the government to the severity of the issue. If the US mail or other mail services had this issue we'd see action much more swiftly.
The problem? Cost is not seen as effectively in this media. It takes seconds to send an email with spam, it takes minutes to spam the world... But the cost involved is mighty! Sure it doesn't appear like it but even if you send spam and it costs .00001 penny per spam, when (last figure I saw mentioned) over 75% of the current email is considered spam, and your talking minimal of 6 billion plus emails that are spam... Then you get the cost involved into the millions DAILY! But its not seen.
That's the unfortunate part, only the tech people see this cost and unfortunately, we see it in costs involved by raising rates etc.
Not the problem? Alan and his likes are leeches onto my bank account whether I buy from them or not.
And if you actually follow the advice/use their links/buy their products when they spam? You sir/Madam are idiots! | |
| | 
sd124re58
@charter.com
| Re: Spammer indiicted? said by GroovyPhoenx :The problem is that there is also a lack of understanding at the government to the severity of the issue. If the US mail or other mail services had this issue we'd see action much more swiftly. The US mail is already inundated with junk mail. I think instead of the bulk mail rate being less than the regular rate it should be double. Sure legit companies would have to pay more, but then maybe they would check their mailing list at least once a year for Deceased people and people that have moved. OR just people that dont respond to anything they are selling, such as credit card applications at least 6 times a month. While were at it, how about the credit card companies quit sending checks with the monthly staement. | |
| | |
Antispam Knight
@pacbell.net
| Re: Spammer indiicted? said by sd124re58 :said by GroovyPhoenx :The problem is that there is also a lack of understanding at the government to the severity of the issue. If the US mail or other mail services had this issue we'd see action much more swiftly. The US mail is already inundated with junk mail. I think instead of the bulk mail rate being less than the regular rate it should be double. Sure legit companies would have to pay more, but then maybe they would check their mailing list at least once a year for Deceased people and people that have moved. OR just people that dont respond to anything they are selling, such as credit card applications at least 6 times a month. While were at it, how about the credit card companies quit sending checks with the monthly staement. Usually, the credit card junk includes a business reply envelope, which requires no postage. Always send the envelope back, preferrably with some old coffee grounds, etc. Or with their own solicitation (with identifying data removed) back to them. If you want to be *really* creative, you can legally tape the business reply envelope to a box filled with any kind of junk (no prohibited materials), and the postage will be paid.
AK | |
| birdfeedr
Premium
join:2001-08-11
Warwick, RI
 ·Verizon FIOS
| Multi-layered approach works best... Just like with malware security.
Postini looks like it's an enterprise system. Great for a corporate client.
But if you use an ISP email account, your ISP's filter might get some of the spam. A lot leaks through the Verizon spam filter.
A client-side filter works to get the rest. Check out G-Lock Spam Combat.
I don't work for them or have any other connection with them, except I use their product, and it works. The free trial works indefinitely on a single account. $35 buys a license for multiple accounts.
Guess what? You can write your own filters that are more robust than what's built-in to mozilla products.
There are six filter types. Don't expect email from China? Delete it without even downloading it.
White list or black list, and more.
Whoops! Did I just spam the forum? Hey mod, then delete. | |
| joeMI
join:2006-08-15
Mcmillan, MI
| Follow the money It's always comes down to money...follow the money.
ISP's will not black list people and companies from service because it's money. If ISP A shuts down a site, ISP B is happy to provide service and get what? Money.
Anti- software companies makes millions (probably billions) from all of this. If it disappeared, so would their revenue stream.
The spammers make money.
The company who is paying the spammer makes money with dumb people who follow the links, etc.
So how do you stop it?
You need authenticated email.
An email must be traceable to the REAL server that sent it. When a server violates the rules, it is disconnected. Unless there are extenuating circumstances, it is disconnected permanently.
If countries refuse to police their population, then that countries email is blocked from entering the USA. Other countries can block if they so choose.
Tough action is long over due. Internet access and email is not a right. If you abuse it, you loose it.
I applaud the Feds. Time to round up the rest of the spammers.
--
HughesNet | Business Internet plan | HN7000S | .98m/2W dish | 91W:1050MHz | 65 signal | ACP 82 | 1150Kbps/80Kbps | |
| |
asd45sdg45sg
@charter.com
| Re: Follow the money said by joeMI :It's always comes down to money...follow the money. ISP's will not black list people and companies from service because it's money. If ISP A shuts down a site, ISP B is happy to provide service and get what? Money. Anti- software companies makes millions (probably billions) from all of this. If it disappeared, so would their revenue stream. The spammers make money. The company who is paying the spammer makes money with dumb people who follow the links, etc. So how do you stop it? You need authenticated email. Someone once suggested paying for email service. say .001 cents per message, not enough for regular users who say send 10-40 messages a month, but would really get the spamers who send 1000's a minute. | |
| | | |
Noah Vail
Serial Thread Killer
Premium
join:2004-12-10
Lorton, VA
·Verizon BroadbandA..
·VoicePulse
| So Ralsky is the Root of Evil. We choose our soap based on marketing.
We choose our politicians based on marketing.
If we didn't research it or blind pick it, we probably own it because of marketing.
It may be that nearly all consumer dollars move because we respond to marketing; without cease.
I'm all for drowning Ralsky, but isn't it a bit like throwing candy at a baby and then drowning it when it picks one up?
Maybe if we did something
other than turing the control of our free will
over to the finest liars and manipulators
that this system can produce;
we might get a different result?
Hmmmmm.
NV
--
Abortion: A Republican Plot to Thin the Liberal Herd. | |
| 
TamaraB
Question The Current Paradigm
Premium
join:2000-11-08
Underway
·Verizon Online DSL
| Alan Ralsky, Ten Others, Indicted »www.usdoj.gov/opa/pr/2008/Januar···003.html
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
THURSDAY, JANUARY 3, 2008
WWW.USDOJ.GOV
CRM
(202) 514-2007
TDD (202) 514-1888
Alan Ralsky, Ten Others, Indicted in International Illegal Spamming and Stock Fraud Scheme
WASHINGTON - A federal grand jury indictment was unsealed today in Detroit charging 11 persons, including Alan M. Ralsky, his son-in-law Scott K. Bradley, and Judy M. Devenow, of Michigan, and eight others, including a dual national of Canada and Hong Kong and individuals from Russia, California, and Arizona, in a wide-ranging international fraud scheme involving the illegal use of bulk commercial e-mailing, or "spamming."
Charged in the 41-count indictment are:
Alan M. Ralsky, 52, of West Bloomfield, Michigan
Scott K. Bradley, 46, of West Bloomfield, Michigan
Judy M. Devenow, 55, of Lansing, Michigan
John S. Bown, 47, of Poway, California
William C. Neil, 45, of Fresno, California
Anki K. Neil, 36, of Fresno, California
James E. Bragg, 39, of Queen Creek, Arizona
James E. Fite, 34, of Whittier, California
Peter Severa, age unknown, of Russia
How Wai John Hui, 49, of Vancouver, Canada and Hong Kong
Francis A. Tribble, of Los Angeles, California
Appearing in court for arraignment today were defendants Scott Bradley and Judy Devenow, who were arrested today. Defendant How Wai John Hui was arrested in the Eastern District of New York on Jan. 2, 2008. The remaining defendants are being sought.
Assistant Attorney General Alice S. Fisher of the Criminal Division said, "The flood of illegal spam continues to wreak havoc on the online marketplace and has become a global criminal enterprise. It clogs consumers' email boxes with scams and unwanted messages and imposes significant costs on our society. This indictment reflects the commitment of the Department of Justice to prosecuting these spamming organizations wherever they may operate. I would like to thank the many prosecutors and agents for their extraordinary efforts leading up to the indictment."
U.S. Attorney Stephen J. Murphy said, "Today's charges seek to knock out one of the largest illegal spamming and fraud operations in the country, an international scheme to make money by manipulating stock prices through illegal spam e-mail promotions. I commend the excellent investigative work of the FBI, Postal Inspection Service, and the IRS-Criminal Investigation Division. I also wish to recognize the significant support and expertise provided by the Computer Crime and Intellectual Property Section of the Criminal Division of the Department of Justice."
[...]
Perhaps they will all be in the clink long enough to contract aids, and die!
Bob
--
Motor Vessel - Tamara B.
43' Long-Range Trawler
Cape Elizebeth ME.
See her Here. | |
| | | |
|
|
Pyrrhic Defeat
