Can anybody stop all this junk e-mail?

Congress sure intends to try, with a new bill designed to stanch the flood of spam.

WASHINGTON - Spam is out of control and Congress is vowing to stop it.

Good luck.

When you consider that even a relatively small Tampa Internet provider is bombarded with up to 2-million junk e-mails a day, taming spam seems virtually hopeless.

But last week the Senate Commerce Committee approved a bill known as the CAN-SPAM Act that is supposed to reduce the flood of junk e-mail. It would require spammers to use legitimate return addresses, prohibit them from using aggressive techniques to "harvest" e-mail addresses and allow consumers to choose not to receive further messages.

"Something has got to be done," said Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz. "This is a good start."

Yet pessimism reigns.

Experts on e-mail fear that spammers - a word now in American dictionaries - will have little trouble finding clever ways to evade any new federal rules. And they fear Congress' good intentions will backfire. They say that if the government creates new rules for "legal spam," legitimate marketers will find it attractive to join the spamming.

Said John Mozena, vice president of the Coalition Against Unsolicited Commercial Email: "You've effectively given the federal stamp of approval to spam."

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Internet service providers are constantly creating new ways to block the unwanted mail, but the spammers inevitably find ways to break through.

Eric Feinstein, president of Internet Junction, a Tampa provider with 20,000 subscribers, says the problem is "really horrific."

He says the battle against spammers is never ending. "There is always a new twist."

His antispam filters block as many as 2-million spam messages each day, roughly 100 for every subscriber. But spammers still find ways to get through.

The spammers harvest e-mail addresses from Web sites or any location that might have a list. That's why people who have never visited a pornographic Web site or ordered sexual products still get X-rated solicitations.

There is even spam to help spammers. One offers "400 MILLION E-mail Addresses in a 3-volume, 5-disk set. Complete package only $139!!"

Another way to find addresses: an aggressive technique known as a "dictionary attack," where spammers essentially pry open an e-mail server and then bombard it with random names, figuring some will get through.

When they send messages, spammers usually disguise their identities by using fake return addresses or relaying their e-mail through someone else's network.

They use misleading subject headings to entice people to read the message. The subject will say "About our lunch next week," but the message will be about mortgage rates or "a medical breakthrough for men."

Some messages offer recipients a chance to reply so their name will be removed from future mailings. But the Federal Trade Commission has discovered those replies usually don't work.

Internet service providers and companies that offer e-mail to employees use an arsenal of filters to block the unwanted mail.

Internet Junction blocks anything coming from Asian computer networks frequently used by U.S. spammers. The Tampa company can also block messages when its computers determine a spammer has sent identical messages.

Consumers can do their own filtering. Many e-mail programs allow people to block messages with certain words in the subject line or in the message itself. For example, they can specify they don't want messages that mention "mortgage rates" or "sex."

But spammers have found ways around those filters, such as putting the apostrophe in se'x or using dollar signs instead of an S.

To evade filters that detect identical messages, spammers include random names and numbers in each message to make them unique.

Who are the spammers?

They typically work alone or with one or two others, and are described as low-rent hitmen who get hired by shady companies.

"We joke that the spammers are the same people who were selling snake oil out of covered wagons in the Old West," Mozena said. "It's the people who are always living the gray edge of legality."

Feinstein, the head of Internet Junction, says a growing number of legitimate companies are using unsolicited e-mail because it is an inexpensive way to advertise.

The spammers seem to be winning the game.

Brightmail, a company that makes antispam software, says the unsolicited e-mails have increased more than 900 percent in the past two years. In April, the company estimates, there were 7-million spam "attacks." Each attack can contain millions of messages.

The public outcry about spam has grown. Unlike paper mail that can be easily ignored or discarded, the unwanted electronic messages clog in-boxes and, depending on your e-mail program, require considerable effort to delete.

"This is really gumming up the Internet," said Rep. Jim Davis, D-Tampa.

Congress has been discussing antispam bills for several years, but the issue hasn't had enough momentum to get through the House or the Senate. Now, it appears likely to pass.

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About 30 states have antispam laws, but they have not been effective.

Officials say that's because spammers are difficult to find, the messages can originate in other states or countries, and because the states have not put much effort into enforcement.

Microsoft and other Internet providers are becoming more aggressive in pursuing spammers, usually with lawsuits that allege deceptive marketing. But it's too early to tell if it's working.

Neither effort has deterred Nikki Noak from her search for Millionaire Moms.

The proposed CAN-SPAM Act (short for Controlling the Assault of Non-Solicited Pornography and Marketing), would require spammers to use a valid return e-mail address. They also would have to provide a way for people to be removed from e-mail lists. The law would put restrictions on the techniques spammers use to hide their identity. The bill also prohibits those "dictionary attacks."

It also would require that spammers indicate in the subject heading that the message is an ad, using a label like "ADV."

Internet companies and direct marketers have opposed some of the antispam proposals because of fears they might hinder e-mail efforts by legitimate companies. But they endorsed the CAN-SPAM bill last week as a practical first step.

Some proposals are tougher. A bill written by Sen. Charles Schumer, D-N.Y., would create a "No-Spam Registry" similar to the new federal database of people who do not want calls from telemarketers.

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Why not simply ban spam?

Many businesses balked at that approach because they say e-mail is a valuable way to advertise. They've convinced lawmakers that a ban could damage legitimate marketing efforts.

Sen. Bill Nelson, D-Fla., said some consumers like to receive e-mail ads and coupons. "There is a legitimate question of not hindering commerce," he said.

But the bills now before Congress may not do enough.

David Sorkin, a professor and spam expert at the John Marshall Law School in Chicago, says spammers are so elusive that new laws will only make a dent in the problem.

"This may be one of the areas where we have to rely more on technology than the law," he said.

Orson Swindle, a federal trade commissioner, told a Senate committee last month that tough laws are helpful, but "the biggest problem we have is finding those who are sending the spam."

Swindle is skeptical about a do-not-spam registry. He said it would be difficult for the government to maintain such a large database. He also doubts spammers would live by it anyway.

Several consumer groups want a more restrictive law that requires consumers to indicate that they are willing to receive spam. Otherwise, spammers could not send it.

Nelson wants the government to use racketeering laws to catch spammers so prosecutors would have broader powers to seize assets.

"We need to give the prosecutors the ability to go after the criminal enterprise," he said.

But Sorkin is conflicted. The more the government tries to help, the worse the problem might get:

"As we remove the stigma from it, a lot more legitimate businesses are going to start doing it."

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