Internet Law

‘Spam King’ Pleads Guilty to Fraud

A West Bloomfield, Mich., man who a federal prosecutor described as “the world’s most notorious illegal spammer” has pleaded guilty to fraud and money laundering. Alan M. Ralsky, 64, is known as the “Spam King” for the years he acted as an e-mailer for hire, the Detroit News reports. Ralsky’s…

Jun 23, 2009 2:38 PM CDT

Town Requires Job Seekers to Reveal Social Media Passwords

Editor’s Note: On June 22, Bozeman, Mont., authorities rescinded the controversial hiring policy. See the latest coverage here. A human resources requirement by the city of Bozeman, Mont., that job applicants provide a host of personal information, including passwords to social networking sites like Facebook and MySpace, is creating a…

Jun 19, 2009 11:21 AM CDT

Facebook Friends its Longtime Privacy Critic

As the saying goes, keep your friends close and your enemies closer. One of the newest faces at Facebook is privacy advocate Timothy Sparapani, a former senior legislative counsel for the American Civil Liberties Union. And until seven months ago when he joined Facebook, he was a big critic of…

Jun 19, 2009 10:24 AM CDT

Decision By Vegas Newspaper to ID Commenters Prompts ACLU Intervention

After first making a sweeping request asking for the identities of all commenters on an online Las Vegas Review-Journal story, prosecutors have narrowed their request. The U.S. attorney’s office now is only seeking the identities of individuals responsible for two comments that the government considers threatening to jurors, the Review-Journal…

Jun 18, 2009 6:31 PM CDT

Judge Tosses Suit Over Gun Purchased on Craigslist

A judge in Manhattan has dismissed a case in which a New York City boutique owner claimed the online classifieds company Craigslist should be held partly responsible for his shooting. The judge, Richard Berman, held this week that Craigslist is immune because under the Communications Decency Act of 1996, Craigslist…

Jun 18, 2009 10:46 AM CDT

Microsoft Sues 3 in Landmark ‘Click Fraud’ Web Ad Enforcement Case

In a lawsuit that reportedly may be the first of its kind, Microsoft has sued three individuals in the same family alleging that they fraudulently boosted the rankings of their auto insurance and World of Warcraft-related websites on the computer goliath’s search engine. At the time of the claimed Internet…

Jun 16, 2009 10:30 PM CDT

Judge Axes Grad Student’s Counterclaim for ‘Abuse of Process’ in RIAA Case

An attempt by a Boston University graduate student who is a defendant in a high-profile music downloading case to turn the tables on the Recording Industry Association of America has been blocked by the federal judge overseeing the case. In a ruling yesterday, U.S. District Judge Nancy Gertner rejected defendant…

Jun 16, 2009 10:01 PM CDT

DOJ Makes a Gamble with Seizure of Online Poker Cash

Gambling experts are debating whether the Justice Department’s recent seizure of $34 million belonging to online poker players will pay off. Whittier senior law professor I. Nelson Rose claims the seizure by the Manhattan U.S. attorney could backfire, leading to a ruling that supports Internet poker, the Wall Street Journal…

Jun 12, 2009 1:39 PM CDT

Laid-Off Associate Joins Computer Hacking Community

At one point, and not too long ago, Nicolle Neulist was following a fairly traditional legal career path. She earned her J.D. and landed a position doing bankruptcy work at Locke Lord in Chicago. But Neulist’s path was interrupted two months ago when she became a victim of BigLaw layoffs.…

Jun 11, 2009 8:02 PM CDT

NY Man Sues Match.com, Claims Many Profiles Are Fraudulent

Brooklyn, N.Y., relationship seeker Sean McGinn has filed suit against the dating site Match.com, complaining that the company misleads members by posting profiles of individuals who aren’t paid members of the site. Match.com’s practices lead to “humiliation and disappointment” for some who feel rejected when their attempts to contact individuals…

Jun 10, 2009 7:23 PM CDT

Netiquette Debate Erupts over Law Prof’s Outing as ‘Publius’ Blogger

Conservative blogger Ed Whelan decided he had had enough after a pseudonymous critic known as Publius called him a “legal hitman” who was distorting the record of Supreme Court nominee Sonia Sotomayor. Writing this weekend on the Bench Memos blog published by the National Review Online, Whelan revealed he had…

Jun 9, 2009 1:06 PM CDT

Cards’ La Russa Announces Twitter Settlement, Site Denies It on Blog

St. Louis Cardinals manager Tony La Russa announced Friday that Twitter agreed to pay his legal fees and make a donation to his animal rescue foundation to settle his suit against the social networking site. The Associated Press Wall Street Journal Law Blog reported the settlement. La Russa filed the…

Jun 8, 2009 5:18 PM CDT

Tony La Russa Sues Twitter over Imposter’s Page

St. Louis Cardinals manager Tony La Russa has sued Twitter claiming that the microblogging site refused to take down an imposter’s page that contained “derogatory and demeaning” remarks. The suit alleges trademark infringement, cybersquatting and misappropriation of likeness and name, reports the St. Louis Post-Dispatch’s Bird Land blog. Two Wall…

Jun 5, 2009 11:49 AM CDT

Social Studies

In February, social networking behemoth Facebook announced changes to its terms of service. The highly publicized dustup that followed was much like most others: one part misinterpretation, one part overreaction and one part grain of truth.

Jun 2, 2009 3:50 AM CDT

(Too) Easy For You To Say

Spewing opinions and epithets online is undeniably cathartic, but payback can be a … lawsuit

Jun 2, 2009 12:50 AM CDT