[ih] Update on filtered list posts

[Olivier MJ Crépin-Leblond]

Hello all,

if you are curious, as an amusement, you can do a search on: hook-up
spam (without the hypen) in your favourite search engine and will see
what kind of emails this word referred to, although a word of warning,
don't click on the links as some of them send you to unsecured places.

Joking aside, Geoff Goodfellow asked whether a bounce email warning
should be sent in return for postings that are deemed inappropriate. The
problem is that often spam emails use a forged return address and can
cause what's called "backscatter"
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Backscatter_(email)

So scanners just drop them. This is the eternal problem of "false
positives" which has been around since the earliest days of anti-virus
scanners.

Kindest regards,

Olivier

On 15/09/2020 17:26, Joseph Touch via Internet-history wrote:
> Hi, all,
>
> I have confirmed that ISOC runs a filter that checks for “inappropriate” words prior to Mailman handling.
>
> That filter was configured to trigger on the word “hook-up” (without the hyphen) due to a spam flurry a few years ago.
>
> That tag seems a bit too generic, as we found out. I’ve suggested they look for a more specific phrase if possible, but for the current time, please insert a hyphen or space on that word. Also, note that profanity also trips the trigger, though we’d appreciate avoiding those terms rather than trying to find work-arounds.
>
> FYI.
>
> Joe (as list admin)