INews Newsletter - Apr 27, 2001
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* * * I N e w s * * *
A publication of Internet Nebraska, composed and distributed by
* * * manager@inebraska.com * * *
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Volume 4, Number 3 April 27, 2001
Welcome to another issue of INews, Internet Nebraska's customer newsletter.
This monthly newsletter communicates service bulletins, announcements and
other useful information to our customers. Please let us know what you
think of it. Archives of INews are located at
http://www.inebraska.com/inews
In this issue: Internet Nebraska's Anti-Spam Measures
Accounting Reminders
Your Own Spam Blocking With Outlook Express
Anti-Spam Legislation
MSN Gaming Zone
Snow White (W95.Hybris.gen Virus)
*** We Block Spam so You Don't Have To ***
Over the past few weeks, Internet Nebraska has been adding measures to cut
down on the amount of junk e-mail customers receive. Hopefully you've
noticed that there's been a decrease in the amount of Spam you receive, and
hopefully you'll see an ever further decrease as we continue to implement
new anti-spam measures.
Spam is more than just annoying, it clogs mail servers making them slower
for those trying to send and receive legitimate mail, sometimes to the
point of crashing the mail server entirely. Spam costs ISPs real money...
more personnel, more server hardware, and more bandwidth are needed to
transport this junk e-mail. ISPs have no choice but to pass this cost on
to the consumer. As you'll see in a later article in this issue, spam is
estimated to cost ISPs nearly $10 billion a year.
In order to understand the methods we've put in place to block spam, you
have to understand a little about how spammers get their mail out to their
"victims." Most spammers do not send using their real name and address, and
do not use their ISP's mail server, as this would attract unwanted
attention and get their account cancelled quickly. Instead, spammers look
for an open relay, a mail server on the Internet that allows anyone to
relay mail. They can then use this server to distribute their e-mail to
everyone on their list.
One effective tactic we're using to combat spam is to not accept any mail
from these open relays. We subscribe to a couple of different services
that maintain lists of these open relays. When mail comes into the system,
the server sending the message is checked against these lists, and mail is
denied if the server is on the list as an open relay.
Sometimes a mail server that's an open relay also has legitimate users, and
mail from these users is also blocked. In these cases, the mail is
returned to the sender along with instructions on how to fix their open
relay and get themselves removed from the lists of open relays.
Another method we're currently working on for cutting down spam is to deny
mail based on a set of heuristics, patterns in the message itself that
identify the mail as likely spam. Finally, we're working on a method for
users to be able to opt out of the spam filtering service, in case they
want to get all that junk mail, or if they have friends or family on the
same server as an open relay who refuses to fix their spam relay.
Are there other services you'd like to receive from Internet Nebraska?
Let us know at manager@inebraska.com .
*** Reminder from the Accounting Dept ***
Our accounting staff would like to offer the following reminders.
For those of you who pay by check, to ensure prompt and correct processing
of your payment, please write your account name or your e-mail address on
your check. We'd hate to credit your payment to the wrong "John Smith."
Those of you who pay on-line with a credit card need to be sure to use the
secure credit card form available at
https://www.inetnebr.com/customer/INCUtils/viewbill/ . You should never
send credit card information via e-mail, as e-mail is not encrypted and not
as secure as you'd generally like to keep your credit card.
Those of you who want a more convenient way to pay than by check or credit
card should check out EFT. With EFT, the funds for your Internet service
are transferred directly to us from your checking account. There are no
more checks to write or credit card bills to pay. To pay by EFT, fill out
the form at http://www.inebraska.com/eft.html and send it to us along with
a VOIDed check. You never have to worry about your payment again, and yet
you retain complete control, being able to stop EFT payments whenever you
wish.
*** Spam Blocking with Outlook Express ***
Even with sophisticated spam filtering being done at Internet Nebraska,
some unwanted mail will still get through. It may be spam, a mailing list
from which you can't seem to get unsubscribed, or that horrible date from
last week who won't stop asking if he or she can take you out again.
Outlook Express provides features to help you stop unwanted mail before it
hits your inbox, and we'll tell you how to use them. We're also including
some tips to help you reduce the amount of spam you receive in general.
You can stop some unwanted mail by setting up a blocked senders list
through Outlook Express. You can do this by:
a. Opening Outlook Express.
b. Going to Tools -> Inbox Assistant.
c. If Inbox Assistant is not under Tools then there should be
Message Rules and then Mail.
d. In the dialog box that appears click on the Mail tab at the
top.
e. Click on New...
f. In this window you can specify the conditions of an e-mail and
what you would like to do with that e-mail.
g. Then just click on OK and there you go!
h. Repeat this step for any additional rules you would like to
make.
In addition, following these tips will help reduce your daily intake of
spam.
1. Never respond to the "removal request" e-mail address that is included
in some mass e-mails. Doing so might put your e-mail address in dozens
of other e-mail lists.
3. Be careful what e-mail address you put in your personal web site. This
is a popular way for spam robots to gather e-mail addresses. Try to
make a separate e-mail account for this. A free e-mail address somewhere
like hotmail.com or yahoo.com is good for this. You can check your mail
occasionally to see if you've gotten anything you want, but your main
mailbox will remain spam-free.
4. Similarly, if you must enter your e-mail address on a form at a web site,
try and use am account where spam won't bother you as much. Again a
free e-mail account from yahoo.com or hotmail.com makes a good choice.
Then, you can wade through their "special update" mails once a week
instead of every four hours.
If you would like to learn more about blocking spam, there is an abundance
of help on the Internet. Just look around and we're sure you'll find the
information you need.
*** Schaefer's TV & Appliance Center - Advertisement ***
Schaefer's is an independently owned and
operated television, appliance, and home
theater retailer in Lincoln, Nebraska.
Born out of a small corner drugstore four
decades ago, Schaefer's TV & Appliance is a
22,000 square-foot "superstore" today,
specializing in commercial/professional-grade
appliances, whole house sound systems, home
theater and central vacuum systems. The
success of Schaefer's is key to repeat
business. If a customer happens to have a
problem with a product, Schaefer's will bend
over backwards to get it solved. Our service
center is the largest in the city, and has been
voted Lincoln's #1 servicer for 10 years in a
row! A knowledgeable sales staff, express
delivery, easy financing, and our customer
service representatives are just a few of the
ways in which we at Schaefer's distinguish
ourselves from the rest. Stop by our showroom
at 48th and R in Lincoln, or call us at
and see for yourself.
-- http://www.schaeferstv.com/index2.htm
*** HR 718 The Unsolicited Commercial Electronic Email Act of 2001 ***
How would you like to make $50,000? Does that sound familiar? Everyday
most of us open our e-mail to find letters promising to give us the secrets
to better health, more money, and all the things that will make us happy.
All we have to do is either call a 1-800 number or send in a certain amount
of money. Currently, our options are pretty limited when we receive this
type of mail, if we can find out who sent it, we can complain to their ISP
and probably get their account turned off, but we have no other recourse.
This could all change with a new piece of legislation that is in committee
right now. House Resolution 718, introduced on February 14, 2001 by
Heather Wilson (R-NM) and Gene Green (D-TX).
HR 718, The Unsolicited Commercial Electronic E-Mail Act of 2001 is made up
of several items to thwart spammers and give individuals the ability to
fight back. HR 718 would require firms to label junk mail as unsolicited
commercial advertisements and include a return e-mail address that allows
consumers to remove themselves from the e-mail list. The resolution makes
it illegal to falsify sender and other header information. Another measure
would allow consumers to file a complaint with the Federal Trade Commission
which would take enforcement actions. The consumer could take the company
to court to recover damage if they continue to receive the spam after they
have requested to be removed from all e-mail lists. Fines on companies
could be as high as $500 per violation up to $50,000 per company. ISP's
could also sue spammers for $500 per violation not to exceed $50,000.
While advocacy groups such as Junkbusters, a New Jersey based anti-spamming
group, hail the legislation as long overdue, they complain that the bill
works with the op-in mode. Internet service providers and end users must
first receive the spam before they can request that it not be sent again.
They feel the legislation does not go far enough in protecting consumers
from junk mail. "No power on Earth, short of nuclear meltdown, will stop
spamming," said Jason Chatlet, Junkbuster's president. "But today
individuals and Internet service providers have a very weak legal right to
stop spamming. A good federal law could substantially reduce, if not
eliminate the spam clogging America's inboxes."
The bill faces tough opposition from many trade groups made up of
retailers, insurers and financial firms who oppose the measure claiming it
could slow the evolution of electronic commerce. Rep. Edward Markley
(D-MA) feels that the legislation might give Internet service providers too
much leeway in blocking e-mail, even messages that don't necessarily
qualify as spam. He felt discussion was needed on the ISP's role.
Some people argue that spam is no big deal, just delete it and go on. The
problem is not that simple. Some estimates have ten percent of the 600
billion e-mail messages sent yearly as spam. In four years according to
the same research estimates, spam will make up 40 percent of e-mail.
Unlike junk postal mail, which the sender must pay to send, the cost of
junk e-mail is passed on to Internet service providers which must assign
more staff and equipment to handle the large amounts of junk messages. A
study released in February by the European Commission found that junk
e-mail costs Internet subscribers worldwide $9.4 billion per year.
Rep. Wilson, the author of the bill, stated the penalties in the bill will
reduce the amount of spam just as similar laws against unsolicited faxes
did a few years back.
As of April 4, 2001 the House Committee on Judiciary granted an extension
for further consideration ending not later than June 5, 2001.
*** The Capital Soccer Association - Advertisement ***
Capital Soccer Association specializes in
teaching soccer. However we recognize that
soccer, or any other youth sport is merely
one tool in the development of a young
child. Teamwork and sportsmanship through
knowledge and proficiency of the game are
our main goals.
-- http://www.capitalsoccer.com/
*** MSN Gaming Zone ***
One of the best on-line gaming web sites on the Internet is the MSN Gaming
zone at http://www.zone.com/ Whether you're playing Hearts with three
friends in two different countries, playing Golf 2001 with a complete
stranger, or racing against the clock in Tundra Madness, the MSN Gaming
Zone probably has something you want to play.
The Zone has sections for both free games that you play right from the web
site, multi-player games purchased elsewhere (but free to play if you
already have the software), and subscription-based premium games such as
the sword and sorcery epic adventure game Asheron's Call.
The zone can tell you when your friends log on so you know it's time for
you special game, and includes chat in each game room as well as one-on-one
chatting. Some games score you points or have tournaments so you can see
how you stack up against other on-line gamers.
*** Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs Virus ***
Perhaps you have recently received an e-mail with the subject of 'Snowhite
and the Seven Dwarfs: The Real Story!' This e-mail contains a file
attachment that is infected with the W95.Hybris.gen worm. The attachment
name can be random but usually has either .EXE or .SCR file extensions.
Often it shows up as being sent from hahaha@sexyfun.net. You should not
open this e-mail. This virus is running rampant, and we get several copies
a week sent to our helpdesk and accounts mailboxes.
W95.Hybris.gen is a worm that, when it infects a computer, can update
itself, e-mail itself to people in your address book, and cause your
computer to display only a large spinning spiral on your monitor. The
virus, when it first is loosed upon your computer, infects a file called
wsock32.dll. After infecting this file, it can monitor all incoming and
outgoing Internet related traffic taking place on your machine.
The virus has a built-in self-updating system, allowing it to download a
more current version of itself, or a plug-in that it can use to further
infect your system. Currently, it gets these upgrades/plug-ins from the
newsgroup alt.comp.virus. The most common plug-in is another virus called
W95.Hybris.Plugin. This causes your computer to display only a large
rotating spiral. The worm is also capable of pulling e-mail addresses from
web sites that you visit, and sending a copy of itself to those addresses.
For more information and removal instructions on the w95.Hybris.gen worm,
please visit McAffee's web site
( http://vil.mcaffee.com/dispVirus.asp?virus_k98873& ) or Norton's web site
( http://www.symantec.com/avcenter/venc/data/w95.hybris.gen.html )
Remember, the safest way to avoid becoming a victim or virii in your
e-mail is to delete ALL unexpected attachments unviewed, even if they're
from people you know.
*** Mr. Internet ***
Q: Dear Mr. Internet, what is this spam I keep hearing about? Nobody ever
sends me any processed meat products via e-mail, although I do get plenty
of mail I don't want. How do I get rid of this mail, and where did they
get my e-mail address? Do you guys sell my e-mail address to mailing
lists?
A: Spam is a term used to describe any unsolicited commercial e-mail
(sometimes known as UCE, especially by vegetarians.) The term spam
comes from an old Monty Python skit where the Spam(TM) just keeps coming
and coming. When the first commercial e-mails were sent out and
mailboxes were inundated, we nerds couldn't help but draw parallels to
one of our favorite Monty Python routines, and the phrase was coined.
It's important to note that Internet Nebraska has never sold any e-mail
addresses, and has no plans to do so. IN works hard to both limit the
amount of spam our customers receive and to strictly enforce our policy
that prohibits our customers from spamming. It would be
counter-productive to sell our customer's e-mail addresses.
Spammers can get your e-mail address in a number of ways, from e-mail
you've sent to public lists, messages posted to newsgroups, addresses on
personal web sites, and from companies that DO sell lists of addresses
put into their web site. (Look carefully for check boxes specifying
that companies you do business with are allowed to "share" your address
with other companies.)
We didn't give you enough tips for reducing spam earlier in this issue?
Okay, here are a couple more.
1. When purchasing online, make sure it is a reputable and secure site,
and that options are not selected by default to give permission for
others to contact you.
2. E-mail manager@inebraska.com with spam messages you receive. Please
be sure to include the entire header of the message so we can trace it
back to the source, and notify the offender's ISP of their violation.
Without this information, there is little we can do, as the From: line
in spam is usually forged. We described the process of copying header
information in an earlier INews, available at
http://www.inebraska.com/inews/viewnews.cgi?issue=20000310
Mr. Internet is a regular feature of the INews, and he welcomes questions
of any kind. Just mail them to mrinternet@inebraska.com, and he'll answer
one or two each issue. Those he doesn't use will not necessarily be
answered, and you should still use 'manager' and 'accounts' for regular
business.