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Courts Step Up to Plate in Battle Against Spyware

By Shari Claire Lewis

Several months ago, the New York attorney general filed suit in a New York state court seeking an injunction against Direct Revenue LLC enjoining the firm from secretly installing spyware or sending ads through already installed spyware. New York v. Direct Revenue LLC, No. 401325/06 (Sup. Ct. N.Y. Co.). The suit has resulted in public disclosure of some of the most reviled Internet marketing tactics by a company that recently claimed it had changed its evil ways and has resulted in allegations of financial connections to some 'good guy' Internet behemoths such as Yahoo, Vonage, MySpace and others.

While motions to dismiss are pending, the public nature of the dispute, including widespread dissemination of court documents on the Internet, has already resulted in greater attention to the issue of spyware. (An earlier suit by the New York state attorney general against Intermix Media resulted in a settlement of the unfair business claim, including payment of $7.5 million. See, www.technewsworld.com/story/qJxm7qrYd4Lekx/Spitzer-Intermix-Ex-CEO-Agree-on-Settlement.xhtml.)

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