REDMOND, Wash., Sept. 12, 2003 — Microsoft Corp. commends the work of the FBI and the U.S. Attorneys office for their successful prosecution of Matthew Thomas Guevara for a scheme to defraud consumers on the Internet. Microsoft cooperated with the investigation that resulted in todays guilty plea in US District Court. The case involved fraudulent e-mail messages — designed to appear as official MSN®
communications — soliciting personal account and financial data from some MSN customers. More information on the case is available online from the U.S. Attorneys office at http://www.usdoj.gov/usao/waw/press_room/2003/sep/guevara.htm
“Microsoft is committed to protecting its customers from consumer fraud and other Internet scams like the one in this case,”
said Microsoft General Counsel Brad Smith.
“We will continue to do whatever we can to support law enforcement to see that those who commit crimes on the Internet are caught and convicted.”
Microsoft does not solicit personal information such as credit card numbers or Social Security numbers via e-mail, and encourages consumers to be wary of any requests for this type of information.
Now that the U.S. Attorney has filed charges and accepted a guilty plea to a charge of wire fraud, the U.S. attorneys office and Microsoft will contact the approximately 180 MSN customers who evidence indicates were compromised by this crime.
Founded in 1975, Microsoft (Nasdaq “MSFT”) is the worldwide leader in software, services and Internet technologies for personal and business computing. The company offers a wide range of products and services designed to empower people through great software — any time, any place and on any device.
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