Tips on Dealing with Spam
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Virginia’s Anti-Spam Act
Why is sending Spam a crime?
Hardly a day goes by in which the news media do not report new examples of the use of computers and the Internet to commit fraud and economic crimes such as online auction fraud and identity theft. Equally troublesome is the problem of "Spam." Unsolicited bulk e-mail, sometimes referred to as "Spam" or "Unsolicited Commercial Electronic mail," is electronic mail which is unsolicited and sent for the purpose of selling the recipient goods, services, or property. Commercial electronic mail advertisements are most often used to solicit multi-level marketing, get‑rich-quick and work-at-home schemes as well as questionable products and pornography. Not only does Spam affect consumer and citizen e-mail users, but it can cripple businesses and Internet Service Providers.
§ 18.2-152.3:1, punishes the use of fraudulent means, such as forging headers or changing routing information, to send Spam. If the sending of Spam is accompanied by any of the following aggravating factors, the crime will be punishable as a felony:
Volume of Spam transmitted exceeds 10,000 in any 24-hour time period, 100,000 in any 30-day time period, or 1 million in any 1 year period;
Revenue generated from specific Spam exceeds $1,000, or total revenue generated from all Spam transmitted to any ISP exceeds $50,000; or
Where defendant knowingly hires, employs, uses or permits any minor to assist in the transmission of Spam.
All other Spam sent with fraudulent use of header or routing information, but without these factors is punishable as a Class 1 misdemeanor.
Forfeiture Provision for violations of the Virginia Computer Crimes Act so that any assets/proceeds accumulated by a Spammer as a result of a violation of the law may be seized and forfeited to the Commonwealth.
"Kingpin Spammers" are those who fund the spamming operations by hiring others to transmit Spam. Specific language addressing “Kingpin Spammers” is included in the definition of "use" of a computer or computer network in order to allow victims to "reach through" and get to the mastermind behind the spamming activity. This gives law enforcement the ability to search for "Kingpin Spammers" who, prior to enactment of this legislation, could escape prosecution because they were not technically "using" the computer or computer network.
Penalty Enhancements for Computer Crimes Involving Obscenity If a person uses a computer (including the illegal sending of Spam sent by FRAUDULENT means) in connection with a violation of Virginia’s obscenity laws, he is now subject to enhanced penalties. Note: not all pornographic or adult‑oriented e-mail is obscene or punishable under this provision.
I think I may have received illegal Spam, what should I do?
If the unsolicited bulk e-mail appears to use false headers, or routing information or appears to be sent using fraudulent means, first inform your Internet Service Provider as the suspected Spammer may have violated the terms and conditions of your Internet Service Provider’s usage policies. Criminal Spam and other computer crimes cases can be prosecuted by local law enforcement. Therefore, you should contact your local police department or Commonwealth Attorney’s office. The Office of the Attorney General’s Computer Crime Unit may also be able to help you or your local law enforcement in the prosecution of a criminal case. In addition, the Virginia Computer Crimes Act gives citizens a civil remedy allowing you to take the Spammer to court yourself.
Who investigates and prosecutes Spam cases?
Local police, state police, the Attorney General’s Office Computer Crimes Unit and federal law enforcement may all investigate and prosecute criminal Spam cases where unsolicited bulk e‑mail is sent using FRAUDULENT means. Some of the larger Internet Service Providers have fraud and security departments that may conduct their own investigations and assist law enforcement.
What are the penalties?
If the Spam is sent with fraudulent header or routing information and is accompanied by one of the following aggravating factors, it is punishable as a Class 6 felony. A Class 6 felony is punishable by a 1-5 year prison sentence and up to $2500 fine, or both.
Volume of Spam transmitted exceeds 10,000 in any 24-hour time period, 100,000 in any 30-day time period, or 1 million in any 1 year period;
Revenue generated from specific Spam exceeds $1,000, or total revenue generated from all Spam transmitted to any ISP exceeds $50,000; or
Where defendant knowingly hires, employs, uses or permits any minor to assist in the transmission of Spam.
All other Spam sent with fraudulent use of heading or routing information, but without these aggravating factors, is punishable as a Class 1 misdemeanor. A Class 1 misdemeanor is punishable by up to 12 months in jail, a $2500 fine, or both.
Spam sent with fraudulent use of heading or routing information and containing obscene material is also punishable as a Class 1 misdemeanor and for a second or subsequent offense, it is punishable as a Class 6 felony.
If you have further questions about Spam or other computer crimes, please call the Computer Crime Unit of the Office of the Attorney General at 804.786.2071.
Tips on Dealing with Spam
The mission of the Computer Crime Unit of the Office of the Attorney General is to spearhead Virginia’s computer-related criminal law enforcement in the 21st Century and to act as a clearinghouse for information concerning criminal and civil misuse of computers and the Internet. This unit is part of the Technology Division of the Office of the Attorney General.
1. NEVER RESPOND TO Spam
They say they’ll take your name off the list. What they really want to do is confirm that they’ve got a live address. Also, if you respond, they’ll sell your address to every other Spammer, meaning you’ll soon be flooded with even more Spam.
2. DON’T POST YOUR ADDRESS ON YOUR WEB SITE
It seems like a good idea at the time, but posting your email address on your personal home page is just an invitation to Spammers. Spammers and the people who sell Spamming as a business have software that "harvests" e-mail addresses from the Net. This software crawls through the Internet seeking text strings that are -something-@-something-.-something-. When it finds one, it catalogs it on a database of other e-mail addresses to be used to send Spam.
3. USE A SECOND EMAIL ADDRESS IN NEWS GROUPS
Newsgroups are the great e-mail address gathering ground for Spammers. If you post to a group, you’re going to get Spam -- it is just a matter of time. So how are you supposed to participate? Use a different e-mail address than the one you use for talking to friends and relatives. In other words, have a public address and a private address. In this way, you’ll only have to deal with the Spam in your public account.
4. DON’T GIVE YOUR EMAIL ADDRESS WITHOUT KNOWING HOW IT WILL BE USED
If a website is asking for your email address, they want to use it for something. Be sure you know for what. Read the terms of use and privacy statements of any site before giving them your address. Ask yourself some simple questions:
If you can’t answer these questions satisfactorily and if you can’t find their privacy statement, don’t give them your address.
5. USE A "Spam" FILTER
While there is no such thing as a perfect filter, anti-Spam software can help keep Spam at a manageable level. Some software is cumbersome; some work better than others; and some require that your e-mail messages be routed through another system for storage and cleaning.
6. NEVER BUY ANYTHING ADVERTISED IN Spam
The reason people Spam is because they can make money. Like all advertisers, they make money by convincing people to buy a product. If no one buys the things advertised in Spam, companies will stop paying Spammers to advertise their products.
7. ASK YOUR INTERNET SERVICE PROVIDER (ISP) TO BLOCK ALL FUTURE EMAIL FROM THE SENDER
This is an important step that can help you and thousands of other subscribers. Once an ISP has reason to believe their network is being used to send unlawful unsolicited commercial e-mail, they can block all further e-mail sent to its subscribers from the address or domain name of the sender.
8. VISIT THESE WEB SITES:
9. FORWARD YOUR Spam COMPLAINT TO THE FEDERAL TRADE COMMISSION OR SUBMIT A COMPLAINT FORM ONLINE AT THE INTERNET CRIMES COMPLAINT CENTER
The Internet Crime Complaint Center (IC3) is a partnership between the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) and the National White Collar Crime Center (NW3C). The mission of the Internet Crimes Complaint Center is to receive, develop and refer criminal complaints regarding the rapidly expanding arena of cyber crime.
If you have a specific complaint about unsolicited commercial e-mail (Spam), use the form found at the Federal Trade Commission’s web site at: https://rn.ftc.gov/dod/wsolcq$.startup?Z_ORG_CODE=PU01. OR you can forward Spam directly to the Commission at UCE@FTC.GOV
You may also forward Spam which appears to be fraudulently distributed to the Office of the Attorney General's Computer Crime Unit at cybercrime@oag.state.va.us.