On 8/20/2014 5:37 PM, Dave Warren wrote:
I've been soliciting users for spam contributions and verifying
samples to ensure mail is definitely spam. I've had a few "unwanted,
but is it spam?" messages and I'd like some advice on whether they're
masscheck candidates, or just candidates for local blacklisting?
1) A medical insurance company is mailing statements and claim payment
information. This is not a phish, they aren't asking for any
information, they're just telling the recipient about transactions,
but also telling the user about other services they "might be
interested in"
The user contacted the company, they refuse to talk to the user since
it's not the actual person. No unsubscription link.
2) Similar situation, different user, with paystubs and no add-on "Buy
more stuff from us", just a "Get your paystub here:" with a link to
what appears to be an actual paystub company. Again, the sender's
support department won't do anything about it. No unsubscription link.
3) Political spam. I get tons at a couple specific addresses,
exclusively from US republicans. If it doesn't have an unsubscribe
link at all?
4) Political spam, same as #3, except it has a unsubscribe link but
the spam keeps coming from the same politician.
(I'm not in the US, nor are most of my customers -- I get some on a
.CA address myself.)
In all four cases, the lack of a functional unsubscription system
makes the messages a candidate for treating them as spam internally,
up to and including IP level blocks, but I'm not sure if these are
good candidates for masscheck or not? My gut feeling is #1 and #2 are
not candidates since they're genuine misdirections, despite the fact
that the sender isn't willing to stop.
However, #1 is right on the border since it includes "Buy more stuff
from us", and I don't give advertising a pass just because it has
non-advertising content... But it's still just legitimate enough that
I'm not feeling like it's a good masscheck candidate.
#3 and #4 feel like good candidates, since they're just advertising
and the sender loses any pretense at legitimacy by failing to offer
working unsubscription features.
Thoughts/suggestions on any of the above?
I follow Chris Santere's definition: Spam is about Consent not Content.
I follow a capitalist view that doing business with a company is implied
consent (I usually follow a rule similar to some legal precedence where
you have to have done RECENT business with them, say 1-2 years at max).
So with that simple set of rules set, here's my interpretation:
#1, not spam. Clear implied consent. Someone hired them and gave them
the email address.
#2, not spam ASSUMING it's a real paystub. Again, Someone hired them
and gave them the email address. If it's a fake paystub, it's just a
phish which is a type of spam.
#3, spam. unsubscribe is irrelevant. Unless you've written an email to
the candidate or signed a petition to them with your email address, etc.
they have no consent to contact you. And blacklist the URL. And
political party has no bearing.
#4, ""
You'll note that having unsubscribe, following CANSPAM, etc. etc. has NO
BEARING on my analysis of is it Spam. If I didn't consent to receive
the email, it's spam. The only real question is what gives consent:
Signing up with a business, giving out your business card, putting your
business card in a fish bowl for a free lunch, etc. are all forms of
consenting to receive emails.
Regards,
KAM
