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Four Big ISPs File Six Anti-Spam Suits

Posted by timothy on from the woodshed-time dept.

ackthpt writes "Wired is carrying news that Microsoft, America Online, Earthlink and Yahoo are filing suits against spammers under the CANSPAM act. They will 'follow the money' to find the perpetrators and shut them down. Suits currently filed against John Does will have actual names attached once subpoenas get the names of the actual persons. I wish them all the luck, as I clean about 500 pieces of drek a day from my mailboxes." Other readers point to coverage from the BBC and from the Associated Press (here's the AP story as carried by the Boston Globe).

25 of 382 comments (clear)

  1. Huh? by MachineShedFred · · Score: 5, Funny

    Microsoft and AOL are evil.
    Spam is evil.

    Microsoft and AOL are fighting spam.

    Microsoft and AOL are fighting evil?

    My brain hurts...

    --
    Slashdot still doesnâ(TM)t support Unicode after it was added to the HTML standard in 1997.
    1. Re:Huh? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 4, Funny

      Think of this as a turf war between biker gangs.

      You have the spammers muscling in on AOL and Microsoft's territory, scaring all their customers. And you have Microsoft and AOL retaliating by taking hits out on the opposing gang leaders.

    2. Re:Huh? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1, Funny

      It's nothing but hot evil-on-evil action!

    3. Re:Huh? by fdiskne1 · · Score: 2, Funny

      Microsoft and AOL are evil.
      Spam is evil.

      Microsoft and AOL are fighting spam.

      Microsoft and AOL are fighting evil?
      When things like this happen, my thoughts are "Evil vs Evil. I hope the battle does much damage to both sides with the most evil (spam) being destroyed in the process." Hey, you've got to have priorities.

      --
      But why is the rum gone?
  2. Now this is... by enrico_suave · · Score: 5, Funny

    Now this is a witch hunt I could get behind!

    Spammers are my inbox terrorists =(

    e.

    --
    Build Your Own PVR/HTPC news, reviews, &
  3. Re:I wonder how effective this will be... by shepd · · Score: 2, Funny

    Spammers are like roaches. If you squash one, they don't go near that area until it's washed up.

    With some luck, this'll send them into hiding for a while.

    --
    If you could be told what you can see or read, then it follows that you could be told what to say or think - BoC
  4. Re:Drek? by Kenja · · Score: 2, Funny
    "What the hell is drek?"

    drek'net/ [Yiddish/German "dreck", meaning filth] Deliberate distortion of DECNET, a networking protocol used in the VMS community. So called because DEC helped write the Ethernet specification and then (either stupidly or as a malignant customer-control tactic) violated that spec in the design of DRECNET in a way that made it incompatible. See also connector conspiracy.

    --

    "Have you ever thought about just turning off the TV, sitting down with your kids, and hitting them?"
  5. Re:I wonder how effective this will be... by notque · · Score: 4, Funny

    I bet it will have an effect, but more than likely the long-term effect will simply be to move even more of the spam off-shore.

    This has been a trend that I've noticed for awhile. Soon all spam jobs will be moved off-shore, and our Government doesn't do anything to stop this.

    Earthlink has personally been responsible for 3 severance packages I've recieved (3 ISPs, all bought by Earthlink, and my job phased out.)

    Now they want to take away any possibility of me working to create, or to stop spam.

    I'm outraged.

    --
    http://use.perl.org
  6. Re:Drek? by annielaurie · · Score: 3, Funny

    It's the Yiddish word for shite, which is the Irish word for shit.

    --
    DUCT TAPE: The Election Supervisors' Secret Weapon
  7. lobby for the spam filters! by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 2, Funny

    With this law the spam filter writers will have nothing to do! We must save the spam filter writers by imposing a tax on all emails .. spam or non spam!

  8. Great. by Gannoc · · Score: 5, Funny


    Now i'm going to never get out of debt long enough to afford that penis enlargement.

  9. Special Treatment by Alien54 · · Score: 1, Funny
    We should give them special bright orange oversized eartags to help identify them. After all, this would only help keep track of them.

    Besides, I am sure that plenty of people would volunteer to help out attaching them

    Unless some has a better idea?

    --
    "It is a greater offense to steal men's labor, than their clothes"
    1. Re:Special Treatment by lostboy2 · · Score: 4, Funny

      Unless some has a better idea?

      How about force-feeding them one can of Spam for every spam message they sent? You are what you eat, so maybe you should eat what you are.

    2. Re:Special Treatment by milkman_matt · · Score: 3, Funny

      Unless some has a better idea?

      How about just posting their info on /.? You remember what happened last time don't you? :)

      -matt

  10. This should be at least amusing by LordZardoz · · Score: 5, Funny

    Most slashdotters seem to hate Microsofts army of Lawyers. Or, they hate lawyers in particular. Slashdotters also hate spammers

    Its always entertaining to see the anti-lawyer anti-corporate crowd actually agree with something that a lawyer heavy super corporation does.

    END COMMUNICATION

  11. Re:Drek? by n()_cHIEFz · · Score: 2, Funny

    First SPAM in my computer now shite? I shudder to think what substance will fill my computer next...

    --
    -- Is it a right to remain ignorant? -- Calvin
  12. Re:Four Big ISPs File Six Anti-Spam Suits by njcoder · · Score: 2, Funny

    Damn! Where've you been? Those butterfly commercials much seem even weirder to you then.

    --
    Open Source Java DAO Generator
  13. This is terrible. by Gannoc · · Score: 5, Funny


    This is an biggest outrage. The only thinging that these companies will accomplish is the suppression of the super legitimate business methods for 100% legal legitimate businesses. This is shameful.

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    To stop these posts to slashdot, send your request toHollywood Plaza Rm. 1903, 610 Nathan Road, Mong Kok, Hong Kong

  14. Re:Four Big ISPs File Six Anti-Spam Suits by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1, Funny

    "Since when has Microsoft been an ISP?"

    I have to agree with the question since when has MSN been an ISP?

    I thought you were suppose to "provide" access to the internet to be an ISP not just "offer" access and give you busy signals.

  15. depends on how you shut them down by Rai · · Score: 3, Funny

    Lawsuits are too common, but something like driving masonry nails into their kneecaps would get more attention.

    I should have been an inquisitor :)

  16. Re:We all get spam but... by MooseByte · · Score: 2, Funny

    "Unless you actually respond to some of those free pr0n or enlargment offers"


    So you're saying it was a mistake to join the penis enlargement mailing list? Damn! I knew it!

  17. UsE BayEsIAn Filters NOW erxcyx.d3q 218 prolific by vivin · · Score: 3, Funny

    New bAyEsIAN sPAm FilTER just for you!!1!! is your inboX filled with spAM? Lose it all nOw!! this revoluTIonAry new spam fiLTErs w1LL st0p yoU from rEceIving spam EVER AGAIN! GET IT NOW!!

    "I had lots of spam before. Now I have none! Bayesian Filters saved my life!
    John Bismarck"

    oierfj.w91i swoerks ms catatonic concinnity arms shipment to fireworks moon salt

    --
    Vivin Suresh Paliath
    http://vivin.net

    I like
  18. Re:I wonder how effective this will be... by The_K4 · · Score: 2, Funny

    Spoken like someone with dozens of dead roaches in his kitchen floor......

  19. isn't it ironic by olscratch69 · · Score: 2, Funny

    Aren't these the same people that made crappy service or product and alowed most of the spam in the first place.

  20. Re:I wonder how effective this will be... by _Sharp'r_ · · Score: 2, Funny

    Yeah, it's those evil corporations again, suing hardworking spammers and driving more jobs offshore...

    --
    The party of stupid and the party of evil get together and do something both stupid and evil, then call it bipartisan.