Security news
Security news18 April 2006
First spammer found guilty under Australian Spam Act Spammer sent more than 56 million junk email messages
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| Mansfield sent over 50 million spam emails. |
Experts at SophosLabs™, Sophos's global network of virus, spyware and spam analysis centers, have welcomed news that the Australian Communications and Media Authority (ACMA) has successfully prosecuted its first spammer under Australia's Spam Act laws.
The Perth, Western Australia-based spammer, Wayne Mansfield, and his company Clarity1, were found to have illegally sent more than 56 million spam messages in the 12 months since the Act was introduced in April 2004. In April 2005, Sophos reported how authorities in Australia raided a suspected spam factory in Perth, during which the contents of computer hard disks and other material were seized.
Justice Nicholson of the Federal Court in Perth, rejected defense pleas that recipients had consented to receive the spam emails. The federal court will determine what penalty Mansfield should receive at a later date.
"The ACMA is to be congratulated for developing and presenting a thorough case against Wayne Mansfield, and for putting an end to the huge amounts of spam originating from his company's servers," said Rob Forsyth, Regional Managing Director for Sophos Asia Pacific. "Australia's Spam Act is a first step towards eradicating locally produced spam. However, it is only through the combination of international cooperation, local legislation, law enforcement, technology enforcement and user education that will help put a stop to spam."
ACMA and Australia's Internet Industry Association recently registered
the world's first legislatively-backed industry code of practice 
to counter spam.
Sophos recommends that companies protect their email gateways with a consolidated solution to defend against viruses, spyware and spam. Businesses should also secure their desktop and servers with automatically updated protection.
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About Sophos
Sophos enables enterprises all over the world to secure and control their IT infrastructure. Sophos's network access control, endpoint, web and email solutions simplify security to provide integrated defenses against malware, spyware, intrusions, unwanted applications, spam, policy abuse, data leakage and compliance drift. With over 20 years of experience, Sophos protects over 100 million users in nearly 150 countries with its reliably engineered security solutions and services. Recognized for its high level of customer satisfaction and powerful yet easy-to-use solutions, Sophos has received many industry awards, as well as positive reviews and certifications.
Sophos is headquartered in Boston, US and Oxford, UK. More information is available at www.sophos.com
