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Microsoft Swoops Down on Phishing
Techtree News Staff, Nov 23, 2006 1501 hrs ISTAccording to reports, as part of its "Global Phishing Enforcement Program" Microsoft has filed nearly 129 lawsuits against phishers across Europe...
According to reports, as part of its "Global Phishing Enforcement Program" Microsoft has filed nearly 129 lawsuits across Europe and the Middle East against individuals creating fake Web pages for Hotmail and MSN.
Under this program, which was launched in March this year, a total of 253 Web sites have been investigated. Out of the 129 lawsuits, 97 are criminal complaints filed in cooperation with local authorities.
Amongst the countries that faced the Microsoft scanner, Turkey was at the top of the list with 50 criminal complaints, followed by Germany with 28, and France by 11. Some other countries including Italy, UAE, The Netherlands, Morocco, and UK also witnessed legal action from the company.
The case trials have already begun in Turkey, where in one of the cases, the phisher has been sentenced to two and a half years of imprisonment. In four other cases, settlements have been made out-of-court.
Microsoft has arrested four phishers in the age group of 16 to 20 in France. These guys have been slapped with a fine of $2,564 as an out of court settlement. In these cases, it was found that most fake Web pages had been created with the intention of getting peers to disclose their log-in identities. The links of the fake pages had been sent via instant messaging.
Microsoft intends to continue with the investigations. This assumes importance, especially so when it is estimated by key research groups that the total damage from phishing may amount to around $2.8 billion this year alone.
Microsoft will also investigate and take legal action against pirated software.
Under this program, which was launched in March this year, a total of 253 Web sites have been investigated. Out of the 129 lawsuits, 97 are criminal complaints filed in cooperation with local authorities.
Amongst the countries that faced the Microsoft scanner, Turkey was at the top of the list with 50 criminal complaints, followed by Germany with 28, and France by 11. Some other countries including Italy, UAE, The Netherlands, Morocco, and UK also witnessed legal action from the company.
The case trials have already begun in Turkey, where in one of the cases, the phisher has been sentenced to two and a half years of imprisonment. In four other cases, settlements have been made out-of-court.
Microsoft has arrested four phishers in the age group of 16 to 20 in France. These guys have been slapped with a fine of $2,564 as an out of court settlement. In these cases, it was found that most fake Web pages had been created with the intention of getting peers to disclose their log-in identities. The links of the fake pages had been sent via instant messaging.
Microsoft intends to continue with the investigations. This assumes importance, especially so when it is estimated by key research groups that the total damage from phishing may amount to around $2.8 billion this year alone.
Microsoft will also investigate and take legal action against pirated software.
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bookkeepingserv
,cheenai, on Nov 24, 2006 02:11 PM
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