The BBC reports on a fascinating study by California researchers into how spammers generate profits.
How Spammers Cash In
November 10, 2008
Share this post
One Comment

Law Bytes
Episode 264: Jon Penney on Chilling Effects in the Digital Age
byMichael Geist

March 30, 2026
Michael Geist
March 16, 2026
Michael Geist
Search Results placeholder
Michael Geist on Substack
Recent Posts
Win, Lose or Draw?: The Federal Court of Appeal Overrules a Key Copyright Case on Procedural Grounds
The Lawful Access Debate Begins: Canadians Should Pay Attention to What the Government Isnât Saying
The Global Battle for Data Control: How the 2026 U.S. Report on Trade Barriers Targets Data Sovereignty Worldwide
The Law Bytes Podcast, Episode 264: Jon Penney on Chilling Effects in the Digital Age
Heads They Win, Tails We Lose: What Lies Behind the U.S. Trade Battle For Control over Data

Onlu part of the picture though
Ah yes! They may not make a lot as “one” person sending spam, but most spammers are in private alliances and more and more are becoming aligned with organized crime.
They take is a lot closer to what people “thought” the take can be, than this study shows.
While the researchers had to “become spammers” to do their research, they didn’t THINK like spammers.
You want to spam, but don’t know how? No problem, there’s step-by-step webkits available. You need a network. You can 1) make your own trojans or 2) lease an existing network. Botnet leasing is a big business. Just sit on some of the spammers IRC channels for a while đ