[2857] in comp.os.os2.announce archive
*** Administrivia -- SPAM, MISC: OS/2 Users Anti SPAM campaign
daemon@ATHENA.MIT.EDU (Mick Brown)
Tue May 6 01:57:51 1997
To: os2ann.DISCUSS@bloom-picayune.MIT.EDU
Date: Tue, 06 May 1997 04:57:15 GMT
From: Mick.Brown@ibm.net (Mick Brown)
Reply-To: Mick.Brown@ibm.net
[Followups directed to comp.os.os2.misc]
---------------------------------------------------------------------
The comp.os.os2.announce submissions box has been spammed by direct email. It
was not via one of the group moderator email aliases or from a news server.
Since I've never posted eLIST email or news using that account as a from: or
reply-to: address, I have no idea where they gleaned the address. One of the
pieces was relayed through spamford.com which is a Cyberpromo domain which
advertises anonymizing services for unsolicited mass email (also known as
SPAM). Cyberpromo is given net connectivity via AGIS.net which along with
Cyberpromo domains has the reputation as a SPAM haven.
I currently receive about 35% topical submissions, 30% off topic, 35% USENET
SPAM. When I began moderating this group about 15 months ago, I received about
60% topical, 30% off topic, 10% SPAM submissions. My ibm.net account is already
receiving SPAM within the first week of using it to post to USENET. My closed
AOL accounts were getting up to 20 SPAMs a day and my only sin was having
created a profile (public resume). This was despite having the AOL SPAM filters
turned on and multiple requests for removal from the lists used by the repeat
SPAMmers.
It seems to be getting to the point that hanging in an IRC "room," having a
home page, posting to USENET, visiting a web site, can result in your receiving
unwanted unsolicited mass email.
I've investigated various options, and determined that probably the most
effective route (for me in my circumstances) will be instigating a "SPAM"
education campaign in the comp.os.os2.misc newsgroup.
See my "OS/2 Anti SPAM campaign" post in comp.os.os2.misc.
One of my goals is to produce a SPAM & OS/2 anti-SPAM tools FAQ so that
interested persons can make more accurate SPAM complaints and not flood the
mailboxes of innocent persons or postmasters. One of my acquaintance's
businesses lost connectivity today because a spammer bounced messages off his
machines and he got inundated in complaints.
The other main goal is to help correct some of the misconceptions about SPAM.
Anti SPAM pages I find helpful are at
JD Falk's Net Abuse FAQ
http://www.cybernothing.org/faqs/net-abuse-faq.html
The Anti SPAM site
http://spam.abuse.net/
Please join the thread titled "OS/2 Anti SPAM campaign" post in
comp.os.os2.misc.
--Mick Brown
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