From: DynaSoar@@YGRI.net (Doktor DynaSoar Iridium) Subject: UUNet UDP In Force Date: 1 Aug 1997 21:08:59 -0400 Organization: Yetii Genetii Research InstiToot Message-ID: Reply-To: unit4@sputum.com Effective immediately there is a Usenet Death Penalty (UDP) imposed on UUNet originated traffic to usenet. All traffic coming from these sources is to be canceled until further notice. Only traffic originating from UUnet (including Alterdial) is being targeted for cancellation. Sites that simply feed through UUnet will not have their traffic cancelled. However, at least one site has already chosen to shun UUnet completely, and other sites may choose to follow suit. Any site that shuns UUnet will not receive posts from UUnet downstream sites either. If the situation is not resolved quickly, it will be advisable for any site currently exchanging news with UUnet to find alternative outgoing feeds. There are very few usenet newsgroups that aren't complaining about the accelerating rate at which spam is filling their groups. Those groups not complaining are already nothing but spam. Their users have abandoned them as unusable. In order to counter this situation, several concerned system administrators and users have been attempting to stem the flood by issuing cancel messages. This has met with some success. However the problem is becoming so bad that even the volume of cancels has become a concern. More success has been had by working with the ISP's from which much of this spam issues. Some are dedicated spam factories and will not respond. Some are responsible ISP's who've found themselves with a problem, and generally they have acted to stop it. Some more quickly than others, but until now all have made an effort and shown improvement. In the last few weeks, the number of spams canceled has exceeded 1 million per week. Consistently, one third to one half of this has come from UUNet. News users and site administrators throughout the world have besieged UUNet with complaints, but to date these complaints have been not been addressed in any way. While other ISP's have put forth efforts to provide to their users and users all over the net with a relatively clean and spam free feed, UUNet persists in non-action. Spammers are now flocking to UUNet because they know complaints are ignored. If the complaints from all across the net are ignored, then it's only fair that UUNet be ignored all across the net. All traffic originating from UUNet will be canceled until they show a substantial improvement in reducing the amount of spam from their system. This action is being taken by several people simultaneously. Their purpose is only to reduce the enormous drain on the bandwidth of the net caused by spam. If there were a significant proportion of legitimate traffic coming from these sites, this action would not likely have occurred. This decision was not reached lightly. These people are well aware of the serious nature of this undertaking. They have absolutely no intention of gaining anything from this other than to preserve usenet from the weight of the spam which not only annoys and drives off users, but literally threatens to ruin the net. Already some systems have suffered breakdowns due to this spam traffic. Others are planning to leave usenet and start a closed network which will not allow spam. In order to preserve the integrity of the net, and for no other purpose, this UDP is hereby imposed on UUNet effective immediately. Further information concerning this decision, and reports of spams counted and cancels issued, can be found on news.admin.net-abuse.usenet. Also available there are references to the FAQs and other documents used by the people who operate the systems that comprise usenet to maintain its operation. -- Unit 4, SubGenius Police, Usenet Tactical Units, Mobile (SPUTUM) SubGenius Tactical Online Message Poster (STOMP) Squadron This *IS* the Public Relations Department. Got a problem with that? "Give me a fast modem, for I intend to go in harm's way."