Reading 'Inside the Spam Cartel' (ITSC) is like watching a racing car crash; you're horrified to see it happen, but you can't take your eyes off it. ITSC exposes spam from the point of view of the 'enemy' -- a spammer who claims 'you need to be ruthless in this industry if you want to make any money at it' (p. 132). This book is an absolute must-read for anyone trying to combat spam, especially policy makers who think passing laws with clever names makes any difference.
ITSC's value derives from the authenticity of the author(s). I suspect that a lead author may have received assistance from contributors, all of whom are spammers, or in one case, a 'reformed-spammer-cum-system-administrator' (p. 320). Some parts of the book hint at a British author (see references to 'parliament' and 'headmasters') while others hint at a New Yorker (see stories of conversing with passers-by in the city, or buying expensive goods on 5th Avenue). ITSC pulls no punches and gives enough detail to make any semi-technically savvy user a future spammer. Just as the Anonymous author of 1997's 'Maximum Security' brought 'hacking' to the masses, Spammer-X brings spamming to a world that only sees spam in in-boxes, not the method by which spam is sent.
I found ITSC's discussion of tools and techniques enlightening. Readers will learn about programs to generate and transmit spam. They are advisted to host images at overseas 'bullet-proof' Web hosts. Spammer-X explains how to manipulate message content for maximum effect, how to receive referrals fees from sites selling products, and how to collect payment via sometimes shady means. The spam case studies in ch 11 were excellent, and the charts showing 'revenue vs. products sold' in ch 6 showed the author(s) treat spamming as a true business.
The only flaws I found involved rough copy-editing and reporting a bogus story involving RFID chips in US $20 bills. I was disturbed to hear spammers defend their need to break into servers to steal/trade/sell email addresses. I was also appalled by their practice of turning innocent home users into bot net participants and spam proxy servers as part of 'the perfect spam' (ch 11). Spamming of that sort is not an 'art form' which transmits 'masterpieces' (p. 369); it is the end result of illegal and destructive intrusions that prey on weaker elements of digital society. Marketing is fine; unauthorized access is wrong.
The author(s) barely mention the best way to mitigate spam (probably because it will work): changing the financial equation. Once users charge senders before accepting their mail (and then refunding legitimate senders), spamming will be too expensive. Until that micro-payment infrastructure is in place, I recommend we all read and heed Spammer-X's fascinating work.