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WASHINGTON -- Naming a new target in its assault on spam, the Federal Trade Commission is cracking down on companies and individuals that market fake international driving permits on the Internet. A nationwide sweep has led to six court actions, many of which charge a number of companies and individuals. The defendants have allegedly used spam to market and sell "international driving licenses" for $65 to $375.

Useless Purchase

"These scams lead innocent travelers to spend hundreds of dollars for false documents," said Automobile Association of America spokesperson Justin McNaull at an FTC press conference Thursday. "Even worse, they may encourage unlicensed drivers to return to our highways, endangering all of us."

The targeted spam messages falsely claim that the fake permits can be used as legal photo ID, to avoid points and fines affecting state-issued drivers' licenses, and in lieu of state-issued licenses to drive legally in the United States. The FTC says many of the schemes may target immigrants to the United States.

Those caught with the fake documents face fines and a "custodial environment," according to Mike Muth, an assistant director at the international police organization Interpol. The FTC has won temporary restraining orders and frozen the defendants' assets in five of the six cases.

"This is not a substitute for a driver's license," said J. Howard Beale III, director of the FTC's Bureau of Consumer Protection. "It won't get you anything. Hopefully, what we can do is dry up demand, which is perhaps the quickest way to put some of these companies out of business."

State-licensed drivers can get legitimate international driving permits from the AAA and the American Automobile Touring Alliance for $10. The State Department has licensed both organizations to distribute the permits. In a 1949 United Nations treaty, countries validated the translation of legal driving licenses. Some 400,000 of the permits are issued annually, and they are valid in most nations--and even unnecessary in some.

Spam Fight Continues

Declining to name specific scams, Beale said the FTC will continue its crusade to unclutter in-boxes.

"We're getting 75,000 spams a day. It is, I would say, a target-rich environment," Beale said. "We think our best leverage is the companies that want you to send them money, and that's really where we want to focus our attacks." A few hundred yards away on Capitol Hill, lawmakers are drumming up support for antispam legislation.

Two Western state senators say they will reintroduce their Can-Spam Act in the near future. The bill was proposed by Senators Conrad Burns (R-Montana) and Ron Wyden (D-Oregon). It passed the Senate's commerce committee unanimously but failed to make it to the Senate floor.

The Can-Spam Act would require companies that distribute promotions by mass e-mailings to provide an easy "unsubscribe" option for consumers, and would impose penalties on companies that falsify information to mask the spam's origin.

"Left unchecked, spam may be the Trojan horse for e-commerce, chasing off users frustrated with the deluge of e-mail," Burns said in a statement on the topic and his legislative efforts.

Although sending spam isn't illegal, distributing deceptive marketing messages is. In recent months, the FTC has charged spammers that have used corporate logos without authorization, disseminated fake return addresses, and circulated illegal chain letters.

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