Re: IESG Statement on Spam Control on IETF Mailing Lists

----- Original Message -----
From: "IESG Secretary" <iesg-secretary@ietf.org>
To: "IETF Announcement list" <ietf-announce@ietf.org>
Cc: <iesg@ietf.org>; <ietf@ietf.org>
Sent: Monday, April 14, 2008 5:39 PM
Subject: IESG Statement on Spam Control on IETF Mailing Lists

> The following principles apply to spam control on IETF mailing lists:
>
> * IETF mailing lists MUST provide spam control.

And what is spam?  I have seen this discussed on several occasions on lists
whose prime concern is spam and there has been no rough consensus.  For example,
Phillip Hallam-Baker, on asrg, summed up one discussion well with
"OK so defining the term spam is off limits to the group because it ends up in
definitional flame wars."

For me, it is dead obvious that the 397kbyte PowerPoint file I received on an
IETF list last week is spam, and I know some IETF moderators who would not have
allowed it on to the list; but equally, I am sure that the sender would protest
his innocence.

If we do not agree what spam is, then the whole of this statement seems to me
pointless.

Tom Petch

> * Such spam control SHOULD track accepted practices used on the Internet.
> * IETF mailing lists MUST provide a mechanism for legitimate technical
> participants to bypass moderation, challenge-response, or other techniques
> that would interfere with a prompt technical debate on the mailing list
> without requiring such participants to receive list traffic.
> * IETF mailing lists MUST provide a mechanism for legitimate technical
> participants to determine if an attempt to post was dropped as apparent
> spam.
> * The Internet draft editor, RFC editor, IESG secretary, IETF chair and
> IANA MUST be able to post to IETF mailing lists. The relevant identity
> information for these roles will be added to any white-list mechanism used
> by an IETF mailing list.
> * There MUST be a mechanism to complain that a message was inappropriately
> blocked.
>
> The realization of these principles is expected to change over time.
> List moderators, working group chairs and area directors are expected to
> interpret these principles reasonably and within the context of IETF
> policy and philosophy.
>
> This supercedes a previous IESG statement on this topic:
> http://www.ietf.org/IESG/STATEMENTS/mail-submit-policy.txt
> That statement contains justification and implementation advice that may
> be helpful to anyone applying these principles.
>
> A separate IESG statement applies to moderation of IETF mailing lists:
> http://www.ietf.org/IESG/STATEMENTS/moderated-lists.txt
>
> _______________________________________________
> IETF-Announce mailing list
> IETF-Announce@ietf.org
> https://www.ietf.org/mailman/listinfo/ietf-announce

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