Spam King ordered to stop by the FTC
January 5, 2005
Under an agreement with the FTC (Federal Trade Commission), an individual known as "Spam King" has been ordered to stop infecting computers with unwanted advertising programs until a federal lawsuit against him is resolved.
Stanford Wallace and his companies, SmartBot.net Inc. of Richboro, Pennsylvania and Seismic Entertainment Productions Inc. of Rochester are required by the agreement to send online ads only to people who visit their Web sites.
Wallace reportedly used spyware to infiltrate computers, installing programs that displayed advertisements. He then tried to sell programs he claimed would remedy the problems. The government says that the programs do not work.
"The commission does believe this is great relief for consumers until the matter is ultimately resolved in the courts," says Laura Sullivan, a lawyer for the FTC. "This provides wonderful protection for consumers in the interim."
In October 2004, US District Judge Joseph DiClerico issued a temporary restraining order against Wallace to block him from sending ads.
Hearings on that order set to take place this week were cancelled because of the FTC agreement. Wallace previously headed up Cyber Promotions in the 1990s -- a company that sent as many as 30 million junk emails daily to consumers -- until eventually leaving his position after the company received lawsuits from America Online and CompuServe.
Source: The WHIR
