U.S. judge orders spammer to pay $15M

United Press International - December 2, 2009

WASHINGTON, Dec 1, 2009 (UPI via COMTEX) -- A U.S. judge has ordered a New Zealand man to pay a $15.15 million judgment for masterminding an international Internet spam network.

The U.S. Federal Trade Commission said in a release Monday Lance Atkinson, a New Zealand citizen living in Australia, was the leader of Spamhaus, which it describe as the largest "spam gang" in the world.

The FTC contends Atkinson's Internet operation deceptively marketed products such as male-enhancement pills, prescription drugs and weight-loss pills.

An Atkinson associate, U.S. resident Jody Smith, agreed to an order requiring him to turn over nearly all of his assets, estimated at $800,000, to settle trade commission charges. Smith pleaded guilty in August and faces possible prison time when he is sentenced this month in federal court in Missouri.

U.S. authorities alleged the spammers violated the CAN-Spam Act of 2003 by sending billions of e-mail messages directing consumers to Web sites operated by an affiliate program called "Affking."

New Zealand authorities said this month Atkinson's brother, Shane Atkinson, and another New Zealander will pay nearly $112,000 collectively for sending spam e-mails as part of the scam.

The trade commission said in addition to the $15.15 million default judgment against Atkinson and his company, Inet Ventures Pty Ltd., there is a $3.77 million default judgment against the remaining three corporate defendants, Tango Pay, Click Fusion and Two Bucks Trading.

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Copyright 2009 by United Press International