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Switzerland Isn't Neutral Toward Spam
Dhericean writes "Switzerland (with the assistance of Microsoft) is preparing a harsh new anti-spam law which would see not just the sender of the spam but those who benefit from it targeted. Does this mean we're going to see viruses sending lots of Microsoft and SCO messages to the .ch TLD?"
Only if the people doing so are subliterate morons who imagine that it will accomplish anything, let alone anything is possible. So, yeah, probably.
Also, note that historically Switzerland's posture has been self-reliant, well-armed neutrality, not passive wussiness. Although the reality behind that pose mostly evaporated a century ago and their security has come more from the fact that it's convenient to have neutral ground during a conflict than from any real military capacity they have. (Although their troops do still have more tools per knife than anyone else's.)
What I'm listening to now on Pandora...
Is it just me that gets uneasy when I hear about laws being drafted "with the assistance of Microsoft"? I don't care how much experience and insight they have, a company with their history should NOT be allowed to write legislation.
You're old school? I beta tested the motherf***ing abacus!
If (BIG IF, I know) this cuts down on spam to .ch addys, I wonder if safe-haven hosting services will spring up in Switzerland. I may not be able to get Swiss citizenship, but perhaps Swiss citizenship for my domain would help stem the tide of spam.
Two wrongs don't make a right, but three lefts do.
It's about freaking time. If cigarette companies are responsible for advertising practices by an agent of the company, why shouldn't this apply to Spam?
So...when can we expect something like this to trickle down to the home of the DEA^H^H^Hfree?
-Turkey
Personally, I think this is a smart move. By targetting those that create the demand for spamming, you can eliminate the profitability of the "service" and thereby put spammers out of business. The only problem I can see with this type of thing is that legitimate, opt-in type lists which are perhaps advertisement supported are potentially liable under this type of legislation as well.
Ita erat quando hic adveni.
Switzerland has some fairly colorful history regarding technology-related laws and reaction to things like spam. For example, for a long time, some UK mobile providers blocked all SMS messages from Swiss numbers, because there were no laws in place prohibiting SMS spamming. Hence, people set up SMS relays all over the place here.
Also, there are quite a few examples where federal or canton (state) level judges ordered ISPs to block websites for various types of content (including one example of "questionable" political messages--look at the SwiNOG archives for details.)
There's a fairly good understanding of technolgy at a government level, but very often not of the consequences. You have to understand that the Swiss mentality (I'm half Swiss so I get to pontificate on this) is largely based on the idea that people are basically decent and law abiding and that processes have to be followed at all costs. This makes the tax people where I live be really nice and proper, but on the other hand, we've had incidents where we were told not to investigate Nigerian phishers too closely, because we'd make ourselves liable for incitement to commit fraud.
Regarding the army, it's a joke. It's an underfunded mass force; they can't find enough for the poor bastards to do, so they set them on guard duty for festivals and to building grandstands at parades, whatnot. Most young people get in contact with at least soft drugs during their basic training, and it's very widely seen as a complete waste of time (n.b. I didn't go, I got a psychiatrist to certify me for a section 8.)
And, deviating from the tech-topics a bit, we've been very wussy and inconsistent in dealing with foreign countries in general and with the E.U. in particular. The Swiss (and this is a sweeping overgeneralization) don't have the killer competitive instinct that your average German, Brit or American displays in dealing with a lot of issues. It's a really beautiful, pleasant, clean, functional and well-run place to live, and that sort of spoils you over time.
Cole's Law: Thinly sliced cabbage
This would work in much in the same way that "caller ID" for telephones shows the phone number of the person calling.
Why, when combined with Microsoft, do I feel a strong sense of dread and the words "MSN Passport" materialise into my head?
For anyone wondering, the Straight Dope has the answer, as usual.
The equivalent for joe is joe->joseph->Sepp
job -> ???
Well, I went with 'schtossa'.
Joe Job -> Sepp Schtossa?
"First you get the Linux, then you get the power, THEN you get the women"
Get it?
This is good news but there is hardly any spam problem here in Switzerland. To my knowledge I've received only one spam message advertising a Swiss company from a Swiss provider. I reported it to the provider who assured me that they had a policy against spam and would take appropriate actions to ensure it would not happen again.
Compared to the tons of spam I receive from the rest of the world everyday, this law isn't going to change anything for me.
True warriors use the Klingon Google
Does this mean we're going to see viruses sending lots of Microsoft and SCO messages to the .ch TLD?
If either Microsoft or SCO has an open affiliate policy that is being made use of, then I would hope to see them targeted and subject to the new swiss law. But I doubt that either of them do.
SPAM is a problem because companies don't monitor their affiliate programs to ensure that none of their affiliates are SPAMers. Companies that don't make an effort to police their affiliate programs should be subject to laws like this.
"Don't blame me, I voted for Kodos!"
But I heard the French just gave up on the problem.
This bill, at least in its original form, was part of the Swiss telecommunication reform act. The commision dealing with consumer protection, which is overseeing this, already stated they wouldn't support the bill (for being too vague, from what I've heard). It also recommended to encourage research on anti-spam technology and advocated bolstering international cooperation.
There's also some partisan fighting going on over this (mostly behind the scenes though).
I visited on businesss a few years ago, as part of a round-the-world business trip. Such a cool place; most Americans have no idea. Switzerland is the only overseas location I would pay my own money to go visit again.
As you say, the competitive instinct is surely not there. The society seems to be structured in such a way as to discourage that kind of thing.
I can't help but imagine Captain Kirk and Mr. Spock beaming down to a small, impeccably clean/efficient planet, inhabited by these smart people who have no real motivation to go explore the galaxy or use their phasers against enemies. Spock says, "The planet is never under attack because seems to be of no strategic value to anyone. In fact, it serves as neutral territory whenever the Klingons fight the Romulans. The people concentrate on taking care of themselves, and for them the universe begins and ends here. Fascinating."