31 Aug 2004
Suspected drive-by spammer faces federal charges, Sophos reports
 |
| Nicholas Tombros is alleged to have used his
laptop to send spam via unencrypted wireless internet access
points. |
A 37-year-old man from Marina del Rey, California, is facing
federal charges for allegedly sending spam advertising pornographic
websites.
Nicholas Tombros has been charged under the United States CAN
SPAM act for allegedly sending thousands of email messages from his
laptop whilst driving in his car through Venice, California.
Prosecutors allege that he would log on to unencrypted wireless
internet access points to send the spam.
"Spammers target the unprotected computers of innocent
businesses and home users to send their junk email, as it makes it
harder for them to be identified" said Graham Cluley, senior
technology consultant for Sophos. "Anyone who has set up wireless
internet access should ensure it is properly secured with passwords
and encryption to make sure that passing hackers and spammers are
not stealing the bandwidth."
According to the US Attorney's office, Tombros could face up to
three years in prison if convicted.
Sophos recommends companies protect themselves with a consolidated solution which can defend businesses
from the threats of both spam and viruses.
About Sophos
More than 100 million users in 150 countries rely on Sophos as the best protection against complex threats and data loss. Sophos is committed to providing security and data protection solutions that are simple to manage, deploy and use and that deliver the industry's lowest total cost of ownership. Sophos offers award-winning encryption, endpoint security, web, email, and network access control solutions backed by SophosLabs - a global network of threat intelligence centers. With more than two decades of experience, Sophos is regarded as a leader in security and data protection by top analyst firms and has received many industry awards.
Sophos is headquartered in Boston, US and Oxford, UK. More information is available at www.sophos.com.