[Mimedefang] Spam ethics question

[Kelson]

On 1/14/2010 10:05 AM, Andrzej Adam Filip wrote:
> "David F. Skoll"<dfs at roaringpenguin.com>  wrote:
>> WBrown at e1b.org wrote:
>>
>>> Why shouldn't I find some honey-pot addresses and submit submit them to
>>> subscribe?
>>
>> Because, IMO, that subverts the purpose of honeypots.  A honeypot
>> is designed as a passive spammer attractor; actively subscribing
>> someone is a no-no.
>
> But actively un-subscribing not subscribed email addresses is OK
> =>  as far as I have heard the effect is almost identical :-)

It's not the effect that's at issue, it's the process.

The whole point of a honeypot is that you have a guarantee that no one 
has ever requested that mail go to that address, so any mail sent there 
is unsolicited by definition.

If you subscribe an address to a list, then *you* have solicited mail 
for that address. As a result, your data is no longer reliable, because 
at least some of that mail coming into that address is mail that you 
requested.

OTOH, if you actively *unsubscribe* an address, then you have 
specifically requested that mail *not* go there. If they turn around and 
use that information to put the address on one of their lists, then 
you've caught them violating your request. It's still unsolicited, so 
it's valid data.

-- 
Kelson Vibber
SpeedGate Communications <www.speed.net>