[Linux-aus] Re: [Osia-discuss] New PITA virus going around

[Steven D'Aprano <steve@cyber.com.au>]

On Mon, Jun 27, 2005 at 12:06:51PM +0800, Leon Brooks wrote:
> All turn and give Redmond the appropriate salute.
> 
> There is a new virus going around which sends email complaining about 
> you sending spam. Unfortunately, some administrators don't stop to 
> check, and so you'll inevitably find yourself added to blacklists for 
> emails which have never been anywhere near any of your machines.

That is not Microsoft's fault. That's the fault of brain-dead
administrators who blacklist people on the basis of easily faked automated
emails. Blaming Microsoft for everything just makes us look like knee-jerk 
(emphasis on the jerk) anti-Microsoft zealots.

I'm reminded of the Scared Weird Little Guys' song from a decade or so 
ago, "Bloody Jeff", blaming everything on Jeff Kennett. They also did a 
version "Bloody Bill" about Bill Clinton. Very funny. But not so funny 
when people do it in real life.

If anyone still thinks that Microsoft has to take ultimate responsibility
for the admins stupidity, because it is Windows' vulnerability to viruses
that allows the emails to be sent out, do a thought experiment:

Suppose there was some black-hat sitting in Romania or Bulgeria or Nigeria 
or somewhere, running a room full of Linux machines. He is sending out 
millions of faked emails every minute. If administrators wrongly blacklist 
people on the basis of those faked emails, would you be happy to blame 
Linus Torvalds and/or Richard Stallman for the problem, on the basis that 
it was Linux and GNU tools that allowed the emails to be sent?



-- 
Steven D'Aprano 
Operations Manager 
Cybersource Pty Ltd, ABN 13 053 904 082 
Level 4, 10-16 Queen St, Melbourne VIC 3000 
Tel: +61 3 9621 2377   Fax: +61 3 9621 2477 
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