To remove a site from the internet [competitor, bad guy, good guy, enemy,
let your imagination run wild]... What is keeping someone from spamming
half a dozen or so sites (just enough to get noticed) with the line
"please visit site 'http://www.xyz.com' for more information."
The same laws that apply to someone running a false advertisement
on TV or newspaper should apply here. Any ISP would be willing
to help law enforcement with appropriate warrants to track
the identity of the spammer.
Take that one step further: we need legislations to make
spamming illegal, just like making crank telephone calls
is. I've a feeling even the smallest ISP would rather
cooperate with law enforcement to help track the identity
of the "law-breaking" spammer than the messed up system
today where the selp appointed anti-spammers feel good
about heaping guilt on ISP's rather than actually punishing
the spammer.
It is upto us whether we want to extend the civilized
system (that gives the state monopoly over judicial matters)
that protects our physical property to our cyberspace
property or continue to fantasize that every ISP must
implement "my version of the AUP".
Sanjay.
Sigh. Which country's laws? If Canada passed a law against spam, who
will Canadians complain to about spam delivered from the US? Suppose the
spam originates in Canada, but is relayed through a non-Canadian
mailserver before it arrives at the Canadian site? Think about it.
Such a law would be much like the internet 'decency' law which the US
Supreme Court is reviewing. They may as well be deliberating on whether
to make rain illegal on Saturday, because it doesn't matter what they
decide. Some US porn sites could get busted, but the sites would move to
another country. And maybe not even that -- Move the JPGs to another
country, and just use links on the porn site which refer to the JPGs.
Germany is leaning on Compuserve about their news feed. But there
is nothing to prevent German Compuserve users from using a non-German
newsserver, so naked-women pictures will be available for the boys in .de.
The only way that national law can ever shape the internet, is to divide
the internet according to national boundaries. With each country cut off
from each other, then you can have enforcable laws. I expect that in the
case of the US, it would reduce spam by up to 10%. Send email from
France to the US? No problem -- Write your email and send it to
'US-CustomsSpamInspector@Email.Imports.US.gov'. They will relay to the
addressee.
Bill