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[IP] SPAM, ABUSE, BLOCK: Steve Ballmer spams domain registration database





Begin forwarded message:

From: Daniel Golding <dgolding@xxxxxxx>
Date: October 30, 2004 12:50:44 AM EDT
To: dave@xxxxxxxxxx
Subject: Re: [IP] SPAM, ABUSE, BLOCK: Steve Ballmer spams domain registration database


For IP...

This email contains several fallacies concerning Microsoft and Spam.

First, an email's envelope and message headers have nothing to do with its
actual origination - at least, not yet. These are both easily forged.

In fact, Microsoft is at the forefront of Sender Email Authentication
efforts, which may, with some work, result in a drastic reduction in overall spam volume. Others working on this effort include the SPF development team and AOL. Microsoft has an entire team of developers and mail protocol folks working on spam reduction methods - a considerable investment, considering
they are freely licensing the technology.

Also, it is dangerous to assume that an email such as this is spam. There are several other possibilities - the recipient may have been subscribed by an unauthorized party or this may be a "joe-job" to discredit Microsoft (and
perhaps, get some of their outgoing mail servers placed on blacklists)

Additionally, Microsoft occasionally outsources mailings to third parties.
While Microsoft would still be responsible for their agent's actions, if
this is indeed spam, Microsoft may not actually know about it.

Finally, while it is possible that some Microsoft employee is spamming, I
find it unlikely - this is most likely a termination offense within
Microsoft, as it is within other large email and Internet service provider
organizations.

While I generally subscribe to Ocaam's razor, it is important to note that
in the world of unsolicited email, things are never quite as they seem.

I'm not a Microsoft cheerleader, for the record - I'm writing this on a Mac. However, Microsoft's recent efforts against spam deserve praise rather than
approbation.

- Daniel GOlding

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