Russian man accused of running vast spamming network

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MILWAUKEE (AP) -- A 23-year-old Russian man accused of masterminding a
vast worldwide spamming network pleaded not guilty Friday in federal
court in Wisconsin to violating a U.S. anti-spam law.

The judge ordered Oleg Y. Nikolaenko held without bond, saying he was a
flight risk because of his access to cash and his lack of ties to
Wisconsin or the U.S.

Nikolaenko was brought into court wearing bright orange prison pants and
matching sweatshirt and shackled at the ankles. His attorney entered the
plea as a Russian interpreter translated for the Moscow man.

Prosecutors say Nikolaenko ran a network that involved placing malicious
code on unsuspecting users' computers and then hijacking the infected
machines to blast out billions of e-mails.

Internet security experts say the network was so massive that on some
days it accounted for one of every three unwanted e-mails in the world.

Nikolaenko is charged with violating the CAN-SPAM act by intentionally
falsifying header information in commercial e-mail messages and sending
at least 2,500 spam e-mails per day, the minimum threshold for the
charge. Prosecutors say his network was capable of sending up to 10
billion messages per day.

The charge carries a maximum penalty of three years in prison and a
$250,000 fine.

Nikolaenko, unshaven with disheveled hair, sat silent and expressionless
during the 20-minute proceedings. snip