Earthlink took action against the ring and its leader, Howard Carmack, known as the “Buffalo Spammer”. The complaint alleged that the group had used stolen credit cards, identity theft, banking fraud and other illegal activities to fraudulently purchase internet accounts and send out unsolicited commercial e-mail – i.e. spam.
In a statement Pete Wellborn, Earthlink’s lawyer, said, “Spam is the bane of the internet. By taking legal measures to shut down a spammer like Carmack, EarthLink can help preserve the internet experience for all consumers, not just EarthLink subscribers.”
Carmack was not at the hearing, and had no comment to make.
In 1997, EarthLink obtained an injunction against Sanford Wallace, the most prolific spammer of his time, followed by a $2 million judgment against Wallace's company, Cyber Promotions, in 1998.
Last year, in what is believed to be the one of the largest victories against a spammer, EarthLink received a $25 million judgment against K.C. Smith, shutting down an operation that had generated more than one billion unwanted e-mails on the internet.
Action against spammers is a growing trend amongst ISPs and the larger tech companies. Last week, AOL, Microsoft and Yahoo! joined forces to fight the menace, while the FTC hosted a high profile conference on the issue.