New Phishing Law Could Net Offenders 5 Years

Democratic Senator Patrick Leahy (D-VT) introduced an anti-phishing bill that would increase punishments for convicted offenders. The bill proposes stiff penalties including up to 5 years in prison and fines as steep as $250,000. For those who are still unsure of what exactly phishing does, spam e-mail to large numbers of potential victims. These direct the recipient to a InformationWeek.com, The Anti-Phishing Act of 2005 will put the pressure on phishing criminals, Leahy said in a statement. "Some phishers can be prosecuted under wire fraud or identity theft statutes, but often these prosecutions take place only after someone has been defrauded...that leaves plenty of time to cover their tracks. Traditional wire fraud and phishing site is just under six days. Leahy also took aim at the newer practice, dubbed "pharming," that doesn't use e-mail, but instead exploits browser vulnerabilities to redirect users to phony sites or overlays bogus account access forms atop the real Web site deal. Chris Richardson is a search engine writer and editor for latest search news