The source of most spam

[Paul Myers]

OPB News Most Email Spam Comes From Russian Mobsters

[myob]

Very interesting article. I had thought most spam came from Nigeria and China.

[Tirmizi]

so where does all the spam coming from anyways ;-)

[Sean Donahoe]

Very interesting read. A lot of people in the network security sector have had to deal with issues from all over the world, we have certainly noticed a giant jump in attacks and infractions from Russia and Eastern Europe. It is not surprising to hear that this is the major source of the worlds current spam.

Botnets are a very real pain in the ass and their methods of deployment and exploitation are very sneaky. As they stated in the article, they are not after "Melissia" style fame, they are wanting a very reliable network of spambots deployed on servers across the world as they are only in it for a profit.

When crime and corporate level business combine, you know you are in for a rough time!

[Chipt]

I just heard on Fox News a couple of days ago that hackers and spammers attack the US Govt., CIA, Pentagon, etc etc computers THREE MILLION TIMES A DAY!

OMG...

And to think it aggravates me to delete obvious garden variety spams...

[And if any absolutely brand spanking new email younguns are reading this... NEVER NEVER EVER open any email if you aren't dead sure that you know the name in the FROM line - no matter how good the subject line seems to be.]

After all, regardless of all the folks who preach that your headline [subject line] in your email is the most important... I heartily and respectfully disagree...

The From line is the most important line in any email because if you are not recognized and accepted [and your email received and opened] by the recipient, many people will scream at the top of their lungs that you're just a mean ol' spammer.

[Even when they forget that they themselves subbed to your list... which incidentally is one reason people should be SO careful when marketing to co-reg leads, too.]

Chip Tarver

[eprenuer]

good stuff, thank you sir.

[Steve Iser]

I remember hearing stuff like this back in the early days - how mafia was involved in online pharma through spidering for data and spam - all that sorta stuff.

Guess it holds merit.

[sparrow]

I had a russian programmer make me some amazing software a while ago, when he decided to set out on his own in the IM world. A few weeks later he came to me asking my opinion about getting over 50k in links in about 48 hrs many from .edu etc...

He had dominated all the top rankings for some pharmacy product and was raking in the dough. Shortly we talked and eventually Google caught up with him and his servers shut him down.

His only regret he didn't orginally start his quest with the Russian Mob first his servers would of never been shut down as he told me.

He was one smart cookie he definitely knew how to fly through all the weaknesses of Google and they are protected over there by the mob.

Does not surprise me.


Ed

[Andy]

Good article Paul, Thanks.

Seems to me the best inroads to defeating these type of spammers (and browser hijackers too) would be to follow the money.

Both try to generate money with affiliate programs. They can't get paid unless they supply information as to where to send the check so it would seem easy to put two and two together.

And that might be what law enforcement does.

Not to say stopping spam would be a cinch, but the money trail seems like an obvious way to go.

Of course once it becomes known (or maybe it has) in organized crime circles how profitable this can be, there could be a flood of similar setups from other groups.

Ain't that a wunnerful thought?

God bless,

Andy

[glchandler]

Now I know that I get so much spam is that I live in Oregon!
Thanks for the link concerning this article.

[admin]

Ole RPM really knows how to make a post don't he?

:-)

[Brian Tayler]

Originally Posted by admin

Ole RPM really knows how to make a post don't he?

:-)

just HAD to test it didn't you

[admin]

Originally Posted by Brian Tayler

just HAD to test it didn't you

LOL..yes, I can't quit playing with all these bells and whistles..

[VegasVince]

Originally Posted by Paul Myers

OPB News Most Email Spam Comes From Russian Mobsters

That's probably because The FBI.... (Forever Bother Italians)... has locked up most the Italian gangsters.



xxx Vegas Vince

"...10 years from now...they gonna miss John Gotti...."

[Paul Myers]

Vince,

The Mafia is reputed to be involved in a lot of "pump and dump" penny stock schemes in the NYC area.

Andy,

A lot of what these folks are involved in is phishing. You often end up following the money back to some hapless individual whose computer got owned.

As far as the money for sales, not much of it will be touchable. Remember, these folks are largely in Russia and eastern Europe. And they have a lot of power.

Allen,

Are we having fun yet?

Chip,

The attempts you're talking about have been, as I've heard it, largely from Chinese sources.

The botnets controlled by these people are a potentially huge tool with which to wage a data war. Some of the larger ones are apparently spending more resources expanding their network of controlled machines.

They're already being used to blackmail private businesses. "Give us $50,000 or we'll take your site down for as long as you need to change your mind."

The way to stop them, or at least reduce their impact, is to clean up infected machines, avoid future infections, and to remove infected machines from the net by blocking their access directly at the source: Their ISPs.

The first two aren't likely to happen any time soon, and the latter will get people screaming at their ISPs about getting their accounts restricted.

Needs to be done, nonetheless.


Paul

[Kevin Riley]

I have never seen so much disinformation in one thread. So, I've hunted down the truth:

1937 - SPAM is born! Originally called HORMEL Spiced Ham, the company holds a contest to create a name as distinctive as the taste. The winner, Kenneth Daigneau, receives the grand prize... $100.

As for the Russians, they were involved with Spam:

1945 - According to Nikita Khrushchev's book, Khrushchev Remembers, SPAM is fed to Russian soldiers in WWII.

As for Spam being a recent threat, it has been a global problem for a long time:

1957 - SPAM goes global as agreements with companies to sell SPAM are established in Ireland, Canada, England and Venezuela.

Why is Spam increasing?

1964 - Hormel Foods buys a hydrostatic cooker to keep up with the demand for SPAM. (It takes only one operator and turns out 350 cans of SPAM per minute.)

Don't know what to do with excess Spam?

Maui Spam Muffins

4 - English muffins, split and toasted
Butter or margarine
Prepared mustard
1 can - SPAM Luncheon Meat, thinly sliced
1 can - Pineapple slices, drained
1 - Green pepper, cut into 8 rings
1/4 cup - Firmly packed brown sugar
2 tsp - Water

Heat oven to 375'F.
Spread muffins with butter and mustard.
Overlap SPAM slices on each muffin half.
Place a pineapple slice and a green pepper ring on each muffin.
Combine brown sugar and water; spoon over sandwiches.
Place muffins on baking sheet.
Bake 10 minutes. Serve hot.

[Tiger]

That link appears to have been nuked....

Who would do such a thing ?

[Hardi Wijaya]

Originally Posted by Coreyg319

I just don't understand how people don't recognize spam when they see it.

This cuts both way. those senders ignore it, and the recipients don't know what spam is.



Hardi

[Arindam Chakraborty]

And as Pete Springer found, much of that money goes to organized crime in Russia

Gee, I never knew that!

Arindam