[IP] more on BBC article on spam "solution" of hashcash, from Microsoft
Delivered-To: dfarber+@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
Date: Fri, 26 Dec 2003 11:50:34 -0700
From: "Robert M. McClure" <rmm@xxxxxxxxxx>
Subject: Re: [IP] more on BBC article on spam "solution" of hashcash,
from Microsoft
X-Sender: rmm@xxxxxxxxxx
To: dave@xxxxxxxxxx
At 01:29 PM 12/26/03 -0500, Dan Steinberg wrote:
The idea of micropayment is not new. It has been brought up and shot down
about as many times as any I guess. The simple issue that fails to be
recognzed by anyone who brings it up is collection. How do you effectively
collect these micropayments when one of the key problems in fighting spam
is the identity of the spammer is hard to find?
This problem has been addressed and largely solved by the design of the VAT
(value
added tax) system. Each party has to collect from those with whom they are in
immediate contact. More precisely, each party must collect, for example
$0.01 from
each party from which it collects one message, and pay the same to each
party to
which it sends a message. For a simple relay, this is a wash. An
individual customer
of an ISP would simply be billed or credited with the (small) amounts
involved. This
would force each ISP to assure itself of the creditworthiness of each of
its customers
or limit the number of messages sent. A spammer sending 1,000,000 messages
would
then find the venture unprofitable. Reducing the financial incentive for
spammers is
clearly the only ultimate solution. Legitimate senders of bulk mail (e or
ordinary) have
long since learned to cull their lists and not send needless mail.
Bob McClure
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