Well the on-going dictionary attack continues to go on. I’ve decided that it’s not a “true” dictionary attack because the addresses targeted aren’t nearly random enough. They’re all reasonable-seeming usernames (like Salazar, May, Dawson, etc) rather than the kind of bob1, bob2, bob3 progression normally characteristic of a dictionary attack. My current assumption is that… Continue reading Dictionary Attack Update
Category: Spam
On-Going Dictionary Attack
Update: I was beaten into submission and disabled my catch-all. More info in the post Dictionary Attack Update</update> A “dictionary attack” is a spammer tactic wherein spam is sent to random addresses at a given domain in hopes that some of it will get through to some willing eyeballs. It earns its name because the… Continue reading On-Going Dictionary Attack
Why Bulk Email *Is* Spam
I found this little spammer whine by way of spamNEWS, a daily email newsletter I subscribe to that aggregates news about spam (which should be obvious from the title). In this particular pro-spam editorial (under the guise of a “press release”), a spammer called Joseph Then attempts to once again play the redefinition game (see… Continue reading Why Bulk Email *Is* Spam
Scott Richter is a Lying Scumbag
One of the top spammers in the world (or should that be “bottom”) is a simpering mouthbreather named Scott Richter. Scotty is a criminal-for-hire who is paid by other criminals to violate your rights. If you have an email address, you have probably already been serial raped by Scott Richter. And now this lowlife shitbag… Continue reading Scott Richter is a Lying Scumbag
Usability Week 2004, Day 5
Exploring email newsletter usability, and the benefits of confirmed opt-in.
Bureaucrats Finally Starting to Get It
A few things happened this week in the fight against invasive marketing. Foremost is the announcement that the very first arrests under the federal CAN-SPAM act have been made. Arrest warrants were issued for four spammers in the Detroit area on the grounds that they sent fraudulent emails hawking weight loss pills, though two of… Continue reading Bureaucrats Finally Starting to Get It
YOU-CAN-SPAM Federal Law vs. California Spam Ban
I haven’t yet weighed in on this briskly-debated issue since everyone else is doing a pretty good job covering the ground. For those who don’t know what the fuss is all about: Two months ago California then-governor Gray Davis signed into law a bill which would make unsolicited commercial email illegal. This law would require… Continue reading YOU-CAN-SPAM Federal Law vs. California Spam Ban
Anti-spam Spam
I have occasionally, and ironically, received spam advertising anti-spam solutions. The most amusing was one about a year ago that asked me to send $5 to a P.O. box in Los Angeles. How that was supposed to stop me from getting more spam I have no idea. That one was forwarded to the FTC. But… Continue reading Anti-spam Spam
The Spammier, The Better
This article from Wired exposes the amusing phenomenon of geeks comparing spam scores. SpamAssassin is one of the more popular spam filters which scans the content of emails and tallys a score based on the detected spamminess of each message. Major red flags such as the phrase “penis enlargement” or the word “offer” in a… Continue reading The Spammier, The Better
Trojan-style Spamware Hiding Behind Funny Videos
Spams have been circulating lately directing recipients to a website where they can see the famous video of Bill Gates being smacked with a pie (among other funny clips.) However, upon arrival at the site, the user is prompted with an Active-X control to install “Internet Optimizer” before proceeding to the hilarity. Accepting the license… Continue reading Trojan-style Spamware Hiding Behind Funny Videos