FTC says anti-spyware vendor shut down

A software vendor that tried to drum up sales by offering to clean up nonexistent computer "spyware" has been temporarily shut down, U.S. regulators said Friday.

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The makers of Spyware Assassin tried to scare consumers into buying software through pop-up ads and e-mail that warned their computers had been infected with malicious monitoring software, the Federal Trade Commission said.

Free spyware scans offered by Spokane, Wash.-based MaxTheater Inc. turned up evidence of spyware even on machines that were entirely clean, and its $29.95 Spyware Assassin program did not actually remove spyware, the FTC said.

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A U.S. court has ordered the company and its owner, Thomas Delanoy, to suspend its activities until a court hearing Tuesday. The company could be required to give back all the money it made from selling Spyware Assassin.

MaxTheater could not be reached for comment.