An Internet service provider, based in the eastern Iowa town of Clinton, has won a huge judgment against a spammer. Robert Kramer, owner and operator of CIS Internet Services, is being awarded a $236 million federal judgment against two defendants, Henry Perez and Suzanne Bartok of Arizona.
A federal judge in Davenport found that Perez and Bartok, who are married, sent more than 23-million e-mails advertising loan refinancing services to CIS computers in 2003. Under the judgment, the couple were held personally liable and not protected by the limited liability of their corporation.
Kramer says he’s pleased with the substantial ruling and hopes the ruling sends the message that spamming won’t be tolerated. Kramer has won two other cases against spammers: $11.2 billion judgment against a Miami spammer in 2006 and more than $1 billion in a judgment against three other spammers in 2005.
