Re: [Asrg] Spam, why is it still a problem?

In message <200601161903.k0GJ38G23149@panix5.panix.com>, Seth Breidbart 
<sethb@panix.com> writes
>
>Craig Cockburn <craig@siliconglen.com> wrote:
>
>> Or more to the point why are we letting it still be a problem?
>
>Why are "we" "letting" burglary, rape, murder, etc. still be problems?
>They've been going on for a lot longer than spamming.
>
Because you cannot control human action. Therefore you cannot control 
the above. However the spammers use computers to carry out their job and 
certainly with the various solutions being discussed it should be fairly 
straightforward to reject email from problem domains outright (DNS RBL) 
or downgrade the trustworthiness of said machines if they do not meet 
certain criteria. As a first step, this would allow spam filters to have 
a threshold set to block such mail. On the flipside if the owner of a 
machine is prepared to go the extra mile and install extra software to 
ensure the mail server cannot send spam and this can be independently 
verified then the said server can be whitleisted to minimise the 
possibility of misclassification. (e.g. with a surname like mine, or of 
course doctors working on organ enhancing drugs)

Using your analogy we might not be able to control people but if we can 
control the tools they need to commit a crime its the next best thing.

>> Given that spam is still a problem, comprising about 90% of email
>> and costing about $40 billion a year, why is it that there is so
>> little visible progress on this list and generally regards
>> implementing a solution that actually works
>
>Which is?  (See FUSSP if you think you can answer that question.)
>
The point your missing is implementation of what has already been 
discussed

There are a number of proposals moving forward (slowly). Each of these 
will help. However I don't see much in the way of actual project 
management of this. Who is driving these proposals - what is their 
marketing plan to ensure wide take up? Where is a discussion of the 
problems bringing them to market? What is the expected timescale for 
having these proposals widely available? Where is the business element 
in the proposals ? Who argues the case for these proposals versus vendor 
specific ones? Where is the viral campaign ala Firefox to get 100 
million people using them in a year (even 10 million might be a start).

Great ideas are nothing if people don't hear about them.

-- 
Craig Cockburn ("coburn"). http://www.SiliconGlen.com/
Please sign the Spam Petition: http://www.siliconglen.com/spampetition/
Home to the first online guide to Scotland, founded 1994.
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