Microsoft Corp. on Thursday said it was filing 117 lawsuits against unknown Internet site operators it charged were engaged in “phishing” schemes to obtain personal and financial information from unsuspecting consumers.

Often scam artists pose as banks or other legitimate businesses, sending out millions of e-mails or pop-up Web advertisements with requests that the recipient update their account information but instead direct them to fake sites.

The world’s biggest software company said it was filing “John Doe” defendant lawsuits in U.S. District Court in Washington state in an attempt to establish connections between worldwide phishers and discover the largest-volume operators.

Source: Reuters