Federal Trade Commission
Court Orders Halt to Sale of Spyware
At the request of the Federal Trade Commission, a U.S. District Court has issued a temporary restraining order halting the sale of keylogger spyware. According to the FTC’s complaint, the Florida-based CyberSpy Software, LLC marketed and sold RemoteSpy keylogger spyware to clients who would then secretly monitor unsuspecting consumers’ computers. The FTC seeks to permanently bar the unfair and deceptive practices and require the defendants to give up their ill-gotten gains.
According to papers filed with the court, the defendants provided RemoteSpy clients with detailed instructions explaining how to disguise the spyware as an innocuous file, such as a photo, attached to an email. When consumer victims clicked on the disguised file, the keylogger spyware silently installed in the background without the victims’ knowledge. This spyware recorded every keystroke typed on the victim’s computer (including passwords); captured images of the computer screen; and recorded Web sites visited.
News Release: http://ftc.gov/opa/2008/11/cyberspy.shtm
Original FTC complaint. (PDF) November 5, 2008.
Update: Email received, 12-08-08.
Dear CertifiedBug.com Editor,
In reference to your article:
http://certifiedbug.com/blog/2008/11/19/keylogger-vendor-cyberspy-under-temporary-restraining-order/On November 25th, the U.S. District Court has ruled that RemoteSpy may
once again be sold and current customers can continue using the software.In consideration of fair reporting, please see our press release at:
http://www.prweb.com/releases/spy/software/prweb1706254.htmOur websites are back online and can be accessed at the following addresses:
http://www.cyberspysoftware.com
http://www.remotespy.comThank you for your time.
– Sincerely, Tracer Spence CEO, CyberSpy Software LLC makers of RemoteSpy
Certifiedbug, December 8, 2008.
U.S. District Court denies FTC Request to Ban RemoteSpy
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