Internet Defense Technology

Continuation of Who are the Biggest Spammers series:

Now we have Vincent Chan is the top Chinese spammer and stays near the top of all major spammer lists (possibly why we have seen such a dramatic increase in spam from this country).

He works together with (presumably his brother) Lap Chung Chan and a small group of Chinese spammers. They specialize in pharmaceutical type spam (viagra, enlarging body parts and so on) but have also been known to spam for watches, toner, ink cartridges and mortgages.

Chan and company were the first to massively abuse Geocities redirectors in 2004/05. He automated the building of pages whose sole purpose was to redirect the user to the actual target website. This allows the spammer to get around numerous well-established spam filters, which would never block a geocities domain, since Yahoo is widely whitelisted on most block lists.

Now they seem to be into hosting redirectors on compromised Windows machines. In addition, Vincent Chan has his own hosting set up (which he also sells to other spammers) that have popped up all over China.

He seems to have an unlimited supply of compromised machines as you can’t just block any one address. In addition he is regularly compromising other’s machines to use to send out his spam.

Sites he creates are characterized by hidden links and site redirections.

Doesn’t sound like he is going to change his ways anytime soon. Best to just get a good email filter to block it all.

We are launching a study on email spam filtering services and would like to get as many responses as possible.

Please take five minutes to fill out the survey here:
Email Spam Survey

We are offering a 60 day trial if you complete the survey (our trial is usually only 30 days).

Thanks for any help you can give on this :)

At least this one has better grammar than some of the other scams I have seen:

FOR YOUR ATTENTION!

FROM: MR.Patrick K. W. Chan
(Executive Director & Chief financial Officer)
Hang Seng Bank Limited
83 Des Voeux Road, Central
Hong Kong SAR

It is understandable that you might be a little bit apprehensive because you do not know me but I have a lucrative business proposal of mutual interest to share with you. I got your reference in my search for someone who suits my proposed business relationship.

I am Mr. Patrick K. W. Chan Executive Director & Chief financial Officer of Hang Seng Bank Ltd. I have an obscured business suggestion for you. I will need you to assist me in executing a business project from Hong Kong to your country. It involves the transfer of a large sum of money. Everything concerning this transaction shall be legally done without hitch. Please endeavor to observe utmost discretion in all matters concerning this issue.

Once the funds have been successfully transferred into your account, we shall share in the ratio to be agreed by both of us.

I will prefer you reach me on my private email address below (mrpchankw@yahoo.com.hk) and finally after that I shall furnish you with more information?s about this operation.

Please if you are not interested delete this email and do not hunt me because I am putting my career and the life of my family at stake with this venture. Although nothing ventured is nothing gained.

Your earliest response to this letter will be appreciated.

Kind Regards,

Mr. Patrick Chan
Posted by GamesMasterJoath at 6:46 PM

Here are some I have heard of recently (this is pretty clean, but not G rated):

PUNISH HER IN BED

UPDATE YOUR PENIS!

Small men, do not give up hope, your time is here right here.

You feel up my senses

Are you Grumpy?

You can be the new Iron Man with your new penis

Start using IT. Your woman will be happy!

Continuation of Who are the Biggest Spammers series:

Next up is Sanford Wallace (also known as “Spamford”) because of the recent case he lost again Myspace, to the sum of $230 million. See Walter Rines for more information on what they have done together.

Wallace, previously owned Cyber Promotions (also called Cyberpromo), a Philadelphia-based junk e-mail firm, which reportedly sent out 30 million spams a day until two ISPs forced him to shut down.

While head of Cyber Promotions, Sanford Wallace was considered cyberspace’s most hated person in the 1990s. Tactics like false return addresses, relaying, and multihoming were among the questionable practices used by Cyberpromo to ensure the penetration of their advertising.

In April 1998, Wallace publicly announced that he was quitting the spam business. Cyberpromo was converted to an opt-in email marketing company and renamed GTMI. The new company was plagued by major financial problems, as well as the spectre of its former self, with large numbers of people unconvinced of Wallace’s change of heart. Wallace pulled out of the new venture quickly. GTMI’s unshaken legacy eventually led to its rapid demise.

In 2001 he was linked to a website, passthison.com, which utilized multiple-window launching to snag Web viewers, an advertising practice rarely seen outside of the online pornography industry.

An additional spyware case landed a $4 million judgement against him in 2006.

Prior to his email spam ventures, Wallace had gained notoriety in other questionable marketing circles, as a heavy utilizer of junk fax marketing, a practice outlawed in the U.S. since 1991.

Might want to pull out while he still has some money left and enjoy a quiet vacation somewhere.

Direct did their annual forecast survey and found that E-mail has become the top medium for direct marketers.

Of the firms polled, 72% send e-mail to customers, a 10% increase over 2007, and 50% to prospects, a 9% hike.

Furthermore, 55% of those who use the medium plan to increase their budgets for it next year.

Luckily not all their money will go there as the survey shows that 39% of those polled conduct search engine marketing, a 10% increase over 2007 and 41% advertise on other Web sites.

While I am sure many of these places do follow the rules, I will bet you money not all of them. Some out of ignorance of the rules and not realizing where the addresses they are buying really come from and some out of a choice to ignore the facts.

Time to get your spam filter running well in preparation for what will only be increase in spam.

The full survey appears in a supplement with the June issue of Direct, article here.