Christopher Smith, nicknamed "Rizler", was sentenced to 30 years in
prison.
Experts at IT security and control firm Sophos have welcomed
news that a notorious spammer who made millions of dollars selling
medications online has been sent to jail.
27-year-old Christopher Smith, who used the nickname "Rizler",
was sentenced to 30 years in prison. Prosecutors had argued for a
stiff sentence after Smith made a death threat against a witness's
children.
In May 2005, federal authorities raided Smith's home and his
company Xpress Pharmacy, seizing his passport and $4.2 million in
assets, including a $1.1 million house and luxury vehicles worth
$1.8 million. At the same time the FBI closed down his 85-employee
company. Investigators concluded that Smith had been selling
medicines to customers without proper prescriptions and selling
drugs without a license. Smith appeared in a federal court after
the raid, but four days later fled to the Dominican Republic.
As Sophos reported
two years ago, Smith was eventually arrested at Minneapolis St Paul
International airport after stepping off a flight from the
Caribbean.
"If anyone is in any doubt about the riches that criminal
spammers can make for themselves, then they should read the story
of Christopher 'Rizler' Smith," said Graham Cluley, senior
technology consultant for Sophos. "Pharmacy spammers are amongst
the lowest of the low when it comes to internet crime - not only
deluging people with millions of unwanted emails, but also
potentially putting lives at risk through dangerous medications.
The authorities should be applauded for finally bringing this spam
king to justice."
Last week, Sophos published
its Security Threat Report July 2007, examining the latest trends
in malware, hacking and spam. One of the topics examined was the
increasing number of organized cybercrime gangs being caught by the
authorities.
Sophos continues to recommend companies protect their desktops
and servers with automatically updated
protection against viruses, hackers, spyware, and spam.
Sophos is headquartered in Boston, US and Oxford, UK. More information is available at www.sophos.com.