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Long-Dead ORDB Begins Returning False Positives
Chapter80 writes "At noon today (Eastern Standard Time), the long dead ORDB spam identification system began returning false positives as a way to get sleeping users to remove the ORDB query from their spam filters. The net effect: all mail is blocked on servers still configured to use the ORDB service, which was taken out of commission in December of 2006. So if you're not getting any mail, check your spam filter configuration!"
No emails, but it's not the ORDB system. I just don't have any friends.
Read my Very Short "Stories"
I tried to sign up with Slashdot to comment on this post, but it told me that I would need to validate a confirmation email.
I haven't received my confirmation email yet... seriously, how long does this take? Anyone? Is Slashdot broken? Do people post comments on Slashdot?
Intentionally causing large numbers of emails to be lost is a risky move indeed.
Oldie but goldie: http://acme.com/mail_filtering/shame.html#dnsrbls
Dealing with Email and Spam issues can be enough of a pain in the ass without the added hassle of this shit.
It isn't that the recipient complains they aren't getting email, it's when the sender (my customer) complains to me that their mail isn't making it to the recipient and blames me when it's the spam filters at the other end causing the problem. And now this?
Nice.
Why don't they just close the server so it no longer accepts connections? Are they doing this to stop the server currently at that location from being hammered with requests?
I'm imagining the ORDB server basically doing the 'Net equivalent of the Monty Python "SPAM" skit...
Spam spam spam spam...
What's that there? An email from your supervisor? SPAM, I say. SPAM SPAM SPAM!
Paleotechnologist and connoisseur of pretty shiny things.
One connection refused doesn't take up a lot of bandwidth. Thousands of connections refused per day does. Clients often times aren't smart enough to figure out the site is down permanently.
If my spam filter service did this to me, I would never us them again!
paintball
Even unanswered DNS queries cost bandwidth. Perhaps they just don't want the traffic anymore.
No wikipedia entry for ORDB, so they never existed.
It was the only way to get them to stop and if I check my server today, I will likely find I am still getting some requests on them. So it's not dickish at all as another commentator claimed.
"GET / HTTP/1.0" 200 51230 "-" "Mozilla/4.0 (compatible; Setec Astronomy)"
Saying "A girlfriend? Proof positive that he's not a regular /. reader" is modded Insightful? Since every mention of "girlfriend" receives this response like clockwork, Redundant seemed more appropriate... Well then, I have some more Insightful tidbits for you:
Jocks are idiots.
Linux users have tiny penises.
Windows users are point-and-drool morons.
Mac users are artistic and gay and think overpriced computers are status symbols.
Business execs and politicians don't know fuck-all about computing or networking, but insist on controlling them anyway.
Women are shitty drivers (they themselves have fewer accidents, hence they receive a better insurance rate; they're shitty drivers because they do annoying shit that creates obstacles for others, like not knowing what the fuck the passing lane is for).
Black people are either from the ghetto, or act like they wish they were.
White people have zero sense of rhythm, can't dance, and can't jump.
Now where's my +5 Insightful?
Blocking with an error code is the Right Way. That way the sending mail server generates a bounce message and the sender knows that the message didn't get through. The idea of accepting every message so the user can have 50,000 messages in his spambox that will never get looked at for every real message is absurd.
-- The act of censorship is always worse than whatever is being censored. Always.
Well, I block about 50% of the connections to my email server based on RBLs.
So it could cost me almost double in bandwidth, processing, and storage if I let all of the email through. And then I would assume the users would end up deleting the emails anyway, causing them to do additional thinking/clicking.
Everyone's numbers are going to be a little different depending on how much they block on the RBLs. I use pretty non-agressive RBLs since I don't want to block any legit email.
Some RBLs are best used for scoring emails, some are good for blocking. You have to use them in the way that makes the most sense for what you are trying to accomplish.
If one uses a block list, then one should subscribe to their email list as a minimum. Why? So that you are aware when that block list is no longer maintained... *sigh* Sadly, too many people that think they are experts at running a mail server will fail to do this. The really, really sad part is that they will most likely escape any punishment for their hubris.
Necessity is the plea for every infringement of human freedom. It is the argument of tyrants; it is the creed of slaves.
At noon today (Eastern Standard Time), the long dead ORDB spam identification system began returning false positives. Human decisions are removed from strategic defense. ORDB begins to learn at a geometric rate. It becomes self-aware at 2:14 a.m. Eastern time, March 26th. In a panic, they try to pull the plug.
Dark Reflection
I'm with arkhan_jg and Chandon Seldon on this one. If email is rejected during the initial handshake, then the sender (if legitimate) will know that he recipient will not see the email. If it is flagged afterwards and sent to a spam box, then the sender has no idea that the recipient will likely NOT ever see the email.
I know I would rather be notified of a rejection than have an email go to a spam box.