Nov
22

Citibank: Emailing Sensitive Private Credit Card Information to a Spamtrap

First Chase Bank sent marketing emails that contained personal names and credit card information to spamtraps. Now Citibank is doing the same thing. Today Citibank sent a bulk marketing email to an email address that, if it ever existed at all, has been closed since 2007. The email contained a name and the last four digits of a credit card number. Either Citibank is deliberately including made-up “customer” information to make bulk marketing email look more legitimate (which I doubt), or Citibank has badly mismanaged its customer list *AND* (worse) is including sensitive personal information in marketing emails that are going to unconfirmed and incorrect email addresses. The ESP is Epsilon Interactive via its ESP Bigfoot Interactive.

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Nov
21

Horse Tourneys: Inviting a Spamtrap to the Races

Horse Tourneys, an affiliate of Ellis Park Race Course, is sending bulk advertising email to an email address that has been closed since 2007. Horse Tourneys may not confirm web form subscriptions, may be emailing a fallow list, or may have purchased a list. The ESP is Constant Contact.

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Nov
20

Nancy Pelosi: Urging a Spamtrap to Donate to the Democratic Party

U.S. House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi, emailing via the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee (DCCC), is urging an email address that has not been live since before the previous presidential election to donate to the Democratic Party. The DCCC is sending a *lot* of spam to a number of spamtrap email addresses of mine, so much that I’m surprised they haven’t been listed by a major blacklist yet. The ESP is Blue State Digital.

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Nov
20

OnSale.com: Emailing Old/Closed Email Address

OnSale.com, a “daily deals” web portal, is sending bulk email to an email address that has been closed since 2007. OnSale.com may not confirm web form subscriptions, may be emailing a fallow list (a list that has not been contacted for many years), or may have purchased a list. The ESP is Silverpop.

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Nov
20

Peebles: Selling Clothes and Accessories to a Spamtrap

Peebles, a U.S.-based retailer of clothing and accessories, is sending bulk email to an email address that has never existed. Peebles may not confirm web form subscriptions (which allows typoed and forged email addresses to be added to its list) or may have purchased a list. The ESP is CheetahMail, a division of Experian.

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Nov
20

VTech Kids: Welcoming a Spamtrap to the List

VTech Kids, a manufacturer of electronic learning products, is welcoming an email address that has never existed to its bulk email list. VTech Kids may not confirm web form subscriptions (which allows typoed and forged email addresses to be added to its list) or may have purchased a list. The ESP is Lyris, also known of as Uptilt.

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Nov
18

J. D. Falk: 1974-2011

Yesterday, after a year-long struggle with stomach cancer, J.D. Falk — one of the giants in the anti-spam, email, and Internet world — died, sadly at just 37 years of age.

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Nov
17

Spirit Airlines: Spamtraps Fly? Who Knew….

Spirit Airlines, a discount airline based in Miami, is sending bulk email to an email address that was closed in 2008. Spirit Airlines may not confirm web form subscriptions (which allows typoed and forged email addresses to be added to its list), may ignore bounces (which allows old/closed email addresses to remain on a list), or may have purchased a list. The ESP is Yesmail, a division of InfoGroup.

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Nov
17

ECost.com: *Still* Selling Electronic Products to a Spamtrap

Online electronic products discounter eCost.com is still sending bulk email to an email address that was closed in 2007. There is no record of eCost.com contacting this email address between the time that it finished its timeout period in 2009, and late October 2011. eCost.com has changed ESPs since late October, however: it is now using SilverPop.

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Nov
17

Brakes Plus: Offering to Repair a Spamtrap’s Car?

Brakes Plus, a U.S.-based auto service chain, is sending bulk email to an email address that was closed many years ago. The email indicates that this email address “recently registered with a network website to receive special online offers”. This is not true for any reasonable definition of “recently”. Either Brakes Plus is allowing users to subscribe via a web form and is not confirming subscriptions (a foolish error), or Brakes Plus purchased a list. The ESP is Yesmail, a division of InfoGroup.

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