Verizon Wireless filed a suit against Specialized Programming and Marketing and its owner, Charles Henderson, who sent the spam messages on behalf of Passport Holidays. In sending the unsolicited text messages to cell phones, Henderson and his company violated the Federal Telephone Consumer Protection Act and are required to pay damages in excess of $200,000.
Passport Holidays was required to pay $10,000 in damages to Verizon Wireless in a separate judgment last year.
"Misguided companies may be tempted to exploit modern technology in their attempt to get marketing messages in front of their potential audience, but spamming mobile phones is not acceptable," said Graham Cluley, senior technology consultant for Sophos. "SMS text spam is a tiny problem compared to conventional email spam, but it is growing. Users should report SMS abuse to their phone network providers and think carefully before acting upon unsolicited text messages."
Charles Henderson, his company Specialized Programming and Marketing, and Passport Holidays are now prohibited from sending text message spam to Verizon Wireless customers.
