The Anti-Phishing Act of 2005 (Long title: "A bill to criminalize Internet

Internet

The Internet is a global system of interconnected computer networks that use the standard Internet protocol suite to serve billions of users worldwide...

 scams involving fraudulently obtaining personal information, commonly known as phishing.") was a United States bill

Bill (proposed law)

A bill is a proposed law under consideration by a legislature. A bill does not become law until it is passed by the legislature and, in most cases, approved by the executive. Once a bill has been enacted into law, it is called an act or a statute....

 to combat phishing

Phishing

Phishing is a way of attempting to acquire information such as usernames, passwords, and credit card details by masquerading as a trustworthy entity in an electronic communication. Communications purporting to be from popular social web sites, auction sites, online payment processors or IT...

 and pharming

Pharming

Pharming is a hacker's attack aiming to redirect a website's traffic to another, bogus website. Pharming can be conducted either by changing the hosts file on a victim’s computer or by exploitation of a vulnerability in DNS server software. DNS servers are computers responsible for resolving...

. The bill proposes a five-year prison sentence and/or fine for individuals who commit identity theft using falsified corporate websites or e-mails.

It was sponsored in the Senate

United States Senate

The United States Senate is the upper house of the bicameral legislature of the United States, and together with the United States House of Representatives comprises the United States Congress. The composition and powers of the Senate are established in Article One of the U.S. Constitution. Each...

 by Patrick Leahy

Patrick Leahy

Patrick Joseph Leahy is the senior United States Senator from Vermont and member of the Democratic Party. He is the first and only elected Democratic United States Senator in Vermont's history. He is the chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee. Leahy is the second most senior U.S. Senator,...

 (D-VT

Vermont

Vermont is a state in the New England region of the northeastern United States of America. The state ranks 43rd in land area, , and 45th in total area. Its population according to the 2010 census, 630,337, is the second smallest in the country, larger only than Wyoming. It is the only New England...

), where it is known as S.472, and in the House

United States House of Representatives

The United States House of Representatives is one of the two Houses of the United States Congress, the bicameral legislature which also includes the Senate.The composition and powers of the House are established in Article One of the Constitution...

 by Darlene Hooley

Darlene Hooley

Darlene Kay Olson Hooley is a former Democratic member of the U.S. House of Representatives from Oregon who represented the state's . A native of North Dakota, she spent eight years teaching high school before entering politics when she was elected to the West Linn, Oregon city council in 1975...

 (D-OR

Oregon

Oregon is a state in the Pacific Northwest region of the United States. It is located on the Pacific coast, with Washington to the north, California to the south, Nevada on the southeast and Idaho to the east. The Columbia and Snake rivers delineate much of Oregon's northern and eastern...

) where it's H.R.1099.

In the Senate

• 2/28/2005 - Introduction. Referred to Senate committee. It was then read twice and referred to the U.S. Senate Committee on the Judiciary

The text of the bill may be viewed at http://www.govtrack.us/congress/billtext.xpd?bill=h109-1099

In the House

• 5/10/2005 - Referred to House subcommittee. Status: Referred to the Subcommittee on Crime, Terrorism, and Homeland Security