Spam king slapped with MySpace suit

MySpace.com has filed suit against Sanford Wallace, seeking to bar the "spam king" and his affiliated companies from the social-networking site.

In the suit, filed last week in US District Court for the Central District of California in Los Angeles, MySpace accuses Wallace of violating state and federal laws including the federal Can-Spam Act and California's anti-spam and anti-phishing statutes, the company said in a statement.

MySpace charges that Wallace launched a phishing scam in October to fraudulently access MySpace profiles. He also allegedly created profiles, groups and forums on MySpace, spammed thousands of users with unwanted advertisements and lured MySpace users to his websites, according to the complaint.

Hemanshu Nigam, chief security officer for MySpace, said in the statement: "Individuals who try to spam or phish our members are not welcome on MySpace." The lawsuit seeks a permanent injunction barring Wallace and his affiliated companies from the MySpace site, in addition to unspecified monetary damages.

The MySpace action is only the latest legal claim against Wallace, a spam king-turned-spyware master. He has been sued by the Federal Trade Commission and companies including America Online and Concentric Network. In May, Wallace and his company Smartbot.net were ordered by a federal judge to give up $4,089,500 in ill-gotten gains.

MySpace, just as other internet companies, is taking action to fight abuse of its service. The company, part of Fox Interactive Media, has also sued Scott Richter charging violations of state and federal anti-spam laws.

An attempt to reach Feeble Minded Productions - a business named in the suit and run by Wallace, according to MySpace - was unsuccessful.

Joris Evers writes for CNET News.com