Hello ACCMailers ... This is a follow-up to the discussions we had a couple of weeks ago. After assuming moderator responsibilities I started checking the manual for the latest version of Listserv, and have made some provisional changes to the ACCMAIL list configuration. I explain them here so that subscribers may comment or make counter-proposals.
The problem is the extraordinary volume of spam being sent to the list. In the first 72 hours, there were 5 genuine messages, about 150 spams and 8 viruses -- and that is *after* the Listserv spam and virus filters have done thir work. Of course, as the list is moderated it is *impossible* for any of these non-subscriber emails to get through to you. Subscribers are not, and cannot, be affected -- but it certainly complicates moderation. However, since I made the changes about two days ago, the flood of spam has stopped almost entirely. So what I have done works, but we need to check that subscribers will not be inconvenienced ... THE CHANGES * Maximum size of any post = 50 kb. This is enough to block email viruses that install programs on the hard disk. But it will also block very large, but genuine messages. I don't recall any messages that large on this list, but it is conceivable. The size limit is not strictly necessary (see the changes below), and could be adjusted to a higher maximum. * Remove all attachments except those that are plain text or HTML. * Discard all HTML in what remains. Subscribers who send messages in both plain text and HTML formats will not be affected. Messages that contain HTML only will not be forwarded to the moderators because they are empty. Most of the spam is like that. If you have configured your email program to send HTML format only, then your messages to ACCMAIL might disappear. Considering the nature of this list, and the fact that few email programs will let you do it, this is a very improbable scenario. * Finally, I extracted the headers from all the spam messages, found a few repeating patterns, and have blocked a small number of individual spammers who are not using fake return paths. Please send your comments to me privately, unless they are on-topic for the list. :-> -- szs `AT` szs.net ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ ACCMAIL Info (automatically generated) ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ To UNSUBscribe: Send UNSUBSCRIBE ACCMAIL to [EMAIL PROTECTED] To get the ACCMAIL FAQ: Send e-mail to "[EMAIL PROTECTED]" and enter only this line in the BODY of the note: send usenet/news.answers/internet-services/access-via-email ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
