[PLUG] Effect of a specific mail filter

[Rich Shepard]

On Wed, 20 Aug 2003, Michael C. Robinson wrote:

> Don't know if this is possible, but what if you opened suspicious email in
> a virtual environment insulated from your real one and evaluated the
> effect, if any, on that environment?

Michael,

  The short answer is that I don't make my living as a Sys Admin. Dealing
with this junk costs me time and money. I'd rather have postfix stop it at
the door and all I see is the daily log summary.

> Just why is it that programs like Outlook Express that crave html
> formatted email and attachments are so worm and virus friendly?

  Others can respond to this more intelligently than can I, but I want to
make two points.

  First, GUI MUAs do not "crave" html; they merely allow it. It's companies
like AOL, Microshaft and a bunch of other "consultants" who push the FUD
that plain text is so passe and people _need_ the eye-candy crap of html
formatted e-mails in order to "dress up" their messages.

  It's no wonder that people mis-communicate so frequently. It used to be
that language skills were desired so that both written and oral
communications could be effective. How would you like to be a part of a fire
team on the front lines in Iraq, Afganistan, Liberia, South Korea or the
Phillipines and your squad leader was brought up on video games and GUI
e-mail? Guess how information flows to you? Yup, radio. No color-screened
cell phone with camera and Web browser built in. I had a lot of friends in
Viet Nam who would not accompany combat patrols if there was any doubt about
the ability of the folks in their squads to effectively communicate using
only words.

  Second, I do not believe that it's the MUA that is so worm and virus
friendly. It's the Microsoft applications (Word, Excel and others) that have
more holes than Swiss cheese. And the gullibility of folks who still believe
there's such a thing as a free lunch. Why do you think the 419 scam has been
running successfully for 20 years? First it was by letter mailed through the
postal services (the 1980s), then faxes (the 1990s) and now e-mails. And
every year hundreds of greedy people world-wide fall for it. Most lose only
all their money. The really greedy ones get kidnapped, beaten, sometimes
killed.

  We're dealing with a people problem here more than anything else. This
suggests it will only get worse and never be solved.

Rich

Dr. Richard B. Shepard, President

                       Applied Ecosystem Services, Inc. (TM)
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