At a Senate Commerce Committee hearing Tuesday, Federal Trade Commissioner William Kovacic said steep fines are OK, but one of the best weapons against spyware purveyors - whom he termed "vicious organized criminals" - would be locking them up, reports CNET.

Congress has been trying for years to pass legislation aimed at curbing spyware and adware, but most of that activity so far has occurred in the House of Representatives.

The purpose of Tuesday's hearing was to allow the FTC commissioners to update the Senate on such efforts and request $240 million for next year's budget - an increase of $17 million.

Commissioner Jon Leibowitz repeated the FTC's call for Congress to elevate the FTC's limited fining powers - not just in spyware cases but also in other situations within the FTC's jurisdiction, such as the use of false pretenses, or pretexting, to obtain telephone records.