Earthlink sued the so-called Alabama Spam Ring in 2003, a multi-state spamming operation in which 16 individuals and corporations sent out more than 250 million spam e-mails.
Amending its complaint in February 2004, Earthlink named the defendants, including Burstyn and DeCrescenzo – who, at the time, was ranked as one of the world's top spammers by the Register of Known Spam Operations (ROKSO), a list maintained by anti-spam group The Spamhaus Project.
The suit, filed in an Alabama District Court, alleged that the spammers used a hierarchy of falsified names, false addresses and non-existent corporate entities to disguise the identities of individuals involved. It accused the spammers of using stolen or falsified credit cards, identity theft, banking fraud and other illegal activities to fraudulently purchase internet accounts and send out their junk e-mails.
The lawsuit also alleged that to further protect their identities, the Alabama Spammers used spam e-mails to direct people to dynamically hosted web sites that would disappear after advertising a product.
EarthLink charged the defendants with violating federal and state laws, including federal and state civil RICO (Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations) laws, the Computer Fraud and Abuse Act, the Electronic Communications Privacy Act, and the Georgia Computer Systems Protection Act.
DeCrescenzo and Burstyn have now agreed to a court order forbidding them from sending unsolicited commercial e-mails and requiring them to pay an undisclosed cash settlement, Earthlink said on Tuesday.
The case continues against the other defendants.
"Today's announcement is the latest in a long list of legal victories that EarthLink has garnered as an advocate for consumers in the fight against spam," said Larry Slovensky, assistant general counsel for EarthLink. "Filing lawsuits against alleged spammers and seeking court orders that put them out of business is an important way that EarthLink helps preserve the integrity of the internet for all users."