Last week, DOJ’s Assistant Attorney General Leslie Caldwell took to the Justice Department’s blog to rally support behind recent White House proposals that would bolster law enforcement tools for prosecuting those who create, sell or advertise malicious “spyware.”  Spyware refers to software that allows users to surreptitiously intercept communications on their victims’ electronic devices such as smartphones and computers.  Although prosecutors in the Eastern Division of Virginia recently brought criminal charges against a spyware seller—a case DOJ characterized as the first of its kind—Caldwell states that prosecutorial efforts have been hamstrung by an inability to seize criminal proceeds resulting from sales of spyware, as well as an inability to utilize money laundering charges to go after those who transfer funds across multiple overseas accounts in order to conceal profits from criminal spyware sales.  
Continue Reading Call to Arms from White House and DOJ on Spyware Sanctions