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Unit 7. News

Listening

Top Spam e-mail Sender Stays in Prison

An American court has sent a strong warning to anyone who sends spam e-mail. Virginia judges decided that one of the world’s top e-mail spammers, Jeremy Jaynes, must stay in prison. He was originally jailed for nine years in 2004 for mass distribution of junk e-mail. He appealed against the decision and was trying to get his prison sentence overturned, saying that sending bulk e-mail was not against the law. He tried to argue in court that his rights of free speech meant he could send as many mails as he liked. The judges disagreed in a 4-3 decision against him. Virginia’s state attorney Bob McDonnell said: "This is a historic victory in the fight against online crime." He added: "Spam not only clogs e-mail inboxes and destroys productivity, it also defrauds citizens and threatens the online revolution that is so critical to…economic prosperity."

Jaynes was thought to be one of the top ten spammers in the world before the police caught him. He used aliases and false Internet addresses to mail out millions of junk mails. Investigators said he sent as many as ten million mails a day, which earned him up to $750,000 a month. Many of these mails were for fake goods and services. The court ruled that Jaynes was sending out false information and this was not protected under America’s laws of free speech. Jaynes’ lawyer said the court’s decision was dangerous as it meant anyone who sent out bulk mail anonymously could now be arrested. Although keeping Jaynes in prison is good news in the fight against cyber-crime, there are thousands more like him. Experts predict that up to 90 percent of the world’s e-mail is junk. Spam also tricks people into giving personal information like bank and credit card details to the spammers.

Unit 8. Journey

Listening

Protecting Antarctica from Tourism

A solution may be at hand for holidaymakers who are finding it harder to get off the beaten track. For those who really want to get away from it all, a new holiday destination has sprung up – Antarctica. However, this new hotspot, or freezing zone, might only be for those with the deepest pockets if a new policy gets under way. Tourism on Antarctica has been increasing dramatically in the past twenty years, from a few thousand people in 1985 to more than 40,000 in 2007. The growing numbers are having a negative effect on the pristine environment of the South Pole. To combat this, researchers from Holland’s Maastricht University have come up with a possible solution: limit the number of tourists allowed to visit and auction the vacations to the highest bidders.

Many environmental protection agencies agree that there is a need to protect the frozen wilderness from the damage created by modern tourism. Antarctica is the last unspoiled place on Earth. It has a very delicate ecosystem that could be easily upset by hordes of tourists landing in airplanes and using skimobiles. A difficulty exists because Antarctica is not a country and therefore has no government to pass laws or guidelines to control the number of visitors. The Maastricht University team’s proposal to auction off a fixed number of tourist places seems a workable solution. It would limit the number of visitors and therefore contain the amount of environmental damage, and the money would be used to protect Antarctica’s future. For further details, consult your local South Pole travel agent