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Virginia Is Not For Spam Lovers
by Maureen Sirhal
Spammers, beware. That is the message that Virginia officials sent this week with enactment of one of the nation's toughest laws to curtail unsolicited commercial e-mail, or spam.
Gov. Mark Warner signed the measure Monday. Representatives of America Online -- the nation's largest Internet service provider (ISP), which has headquarters in Virginia -- attended the bill-signing ceremony, as did Attorney General Jerry Kilgore and others.
The law imposes harsh criminal penalties, including prison sentences, on individuals who intentionally misappropriate computer systems or send fraudulent spam. Individuals caught using fake e-mail headers or information in e-mail subject lines, or who mask the transmission of their messages, could serve one to five years in prison. And people who attempt to send either 10,000 messages in 24 hours or 100,000 messages within 30 days could be liable for jail time.
The act also imposes criminal penalties for obscenity violations in connection with spamming operations, and it prohibits the sale and distribution of software chiefly designed to conceal the origin of unsolicited commercial e-mails. It creates extra-territorial liability for individuals who do not live in Virginia or who send messages to non-Virginia residents.
Virginia is home to some of the biggest ISPs, including AOL, and large telecommunications firms such as WorldCom, which owns a major portion of the Internet backbone. If e-mail travels through such networks in the state, officials said, it is now subject to the statute. "Half the world's Internet traffic passes through the Commonwealth of Virginia," Warner said, "so it is appropriate that we give our prosecutors tools to go after this costly and annoying crime."
Kilgore told National Journal's Technology Daily, however, that law enforcers in Virginia may encounter difficulty pursuing violators beyond state boundaries. "We recognize it poses a big challenge but not an insurmountable challenge," he said. "We plan to partner with the business community ... in targeting the big spammers."
He added that by partnering with firms like AOL, Microsoft's MSN Internet Service and Yahoo, Virginia law enforcers can target the "most egregious of the spammers." Under the law, Kilgore will have the authority to seize profits derived from spamming operations, a move not possible under current civil penalties.
The measure is part of a broader package on computer crime, Kilgore said. He added that the anti-spam law is necessary to help Virginia-based businesses that shoulder the burdens of spam, which some experts have said costs U.S. businesses billions of dollars in additional Internet bandwidth and lost worker productivity.
Enactment of the measure comes as federal policymakers are pondering ways to combat spam. The FTC is hosting a three-day workshop this week on how to curtail spam. And Congress is weighing legislation that seeks to outlaw false information in e-mail headers and subject lines and that would require companies to let opt out of receiving unsolicited commercial e-mail.
Kilgore expressed concern that the measure, S. 877, would override state laws. "We're certainly concerned that any pre-emption would trump what we believe is already a very strong law in Virginia," he said. "We traditionally have opposed pre-emption and we're working with our senators, George Allen and John Warner, to make the case that Virginia is doing it the right way."
Tech Consolidation In Virginia Sparks Veto
In other Virginia news, Gov. Warner on Wednesday vetoed a provision of the state's fiscal 2004 budget measure that he claimed would have hampered efforts to consolidate technology procurement and management into one new agency. Warner said in a statement that that provision would have required detailed reporting of how money for tech initiatives would be used in the Virginia Information Technology Agency.
For example, Warner said state officials would have had to provide a listing of the equipment, funds or staff identified for transfers into the new agency at least 60 days before the transition, and the agency would have been required to submit quarterly reports on cost savings and other consolidation activities. Additionally, Warner would have been required to submit to the state General Assembly "any uses of the Virginia Technology Fund."
"In taking this action, I have no intention of bypassing the appropriate oversight of the General Assembly," Warner stated. "I am prepared to work with the relevant committees to develop a reporting mechanism that meets the needs of the General Assembly without hampering consolidation efforts."
Texan Pleads Guilty To Having Child Porn
A former police officer at Tarrant County Community College in Texas on Monday pleaded guilty to possessing and distributing child pornography, the state Attorney General's office said.
Texas Attorney General Greg Abbott's Internet Bureau and Johnson County District Attorney Dale Hanna alleged that the former officer, Ernest Dwaine Brown, owned computer images of children engaged in sexual conduct with adults and transferred those images to computer discs that could be shared widely.
Under his plea agreement, Brown will serve a 14-year jail term. He was arrested Nov. 19 thanks to a tip from the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children in Virginia.
Florida 'Signal Theft' Bill Clears Hurdle
Florida House lawmakers may be voting again as soon as this week on an anti-piracy measure backed by content industries.
Legislation to expand to online services the law against "signal theft" of cable services has been the center of controversy between the film industry and a group of consumer advocates who argue that the measure would hamper the development of new technologies. The draft law, under consideration in several states, would cover online theft of products like movies and music.
The state Senate voted this week approved an amended version of the House-passed bill, H.B.79. The measure now goes back to the House. If passed before the Florida legislature concludes its session this week, the measure would be sent to Gov. Jeb Bush for his signature or veto.
States Still Face Budget Crisis
Although legislative sessions are ending in the next two months for most states, the National Conference of State Legislatures (NCSL) estimated that most states are still struggling to close a combined $21.5 billion revenue gap to meet balanced-budget requirements.
According to a report released last week, NCSL said that overall, 41 states started the year facing a cumulative budget deficit of $78.4 billion. Thirty-seven of those states reported gaps in excess of 5 percent of their general funds, and 19 of those exceed 10 percent.
Despite budget woes, Washington state senators have passed legislation to extend tax breaks to high-tech firms for another decade, The Seattle Times reports. But the plan faces scrutiny from Democrats who argue that tough fiscal times merit delaying tax breaks.
Under the measure, firms would be eligible for a sales-tax exemption on construction equipment to be used for research and development. Additionally, firms could deduct up to $2 million in business and occupation taxes for R&D investments.
Democrats in the state argue that there is not enough empirical evidence that the tax breaks are helping industry create jobs. The Times noted that the state Revenue Department showed that in 1999, 70 jobs were created as a result of the credits, and patents issued to Washington-based high-tech firms increased. However, the state's overall R&D ranks have remained stagnant.
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