POINTER: ALL THESE NET-ABUSE GROUPS! WHICH ONE SHOULD I USE?

[Russ Allbery]

Last-modified: 2003-10-04 (revision 1.14)
Posted-by: postfaq 1.15 (Perl 5.8.8)
Archive-name: net-abuse-faq/newsgroups
URL: http://www.eyrie.org/~eagle/faqs/nana-groups.html
Original-author: Fluffy <***@usa.net>
Posting-frequency: weekly

We have a plentiful selection of newsgroups about network abuse and
related issues, but what is the best one to use? Here are excerpts from
the newsgroups' charters, with emphasis added to help make things clear.
Please refer to the full charters, URLs included here when available, if
you would like more detail.

If you want to learn more about network abuse -- what it is, what can be
done about it and just what all those acronyms mean -- Tim Skirvin has
pointers to more sources of information at:

<http://www.killfile.org/~tskirvin/nana/>

Thank you for following these recommendations. It will make these
newsgroups more useful for all involved.

Network Abuse Newsgroups:

news.admin.net-abuse.blocklisting (moderated)
"News.admin.net-abuse.blocklisting is a newsgroup devoted to
discussion of subjects related to the USE, ADMINISTRATION, AND EFFECTS
OF BLOCKLISTS in ameliorating the problem of unsolicited bulk email
and other unwanted or abusive network traffic. Any topic which is
especially of interest to those maintaining, using, or affected by
blocklists is welcome in this group."

<http://www.killfile.org/~tskirvin/nana/charter/nanab2.html>

news.admin.net-abuse.bulletins (moderated)
"News.admin.net-abuse.bulletins is a moderated forum for BULLETINS OF
ACTION TAKEN AGAINST NET ABUSE. Appropriate subjects include
cancellation notices (EMP/ECP, spew, binary, and others), status
reports from individual systems concerning action taken against
abusers, results of tracking campaigns, "rogue site" declarations, and
the like." You brought down a spammer? This is the place to report
it.

<http://www.killfile.org/~tskirvin/nana/charter/nanab.html>

news.admin.net-abuse.sightings (robomoderated)
"News.admin.net-abuse.sightings is a forum for REPORTS OF SIGHTINGS OF
NET ABUSE. It is a robomoderated forum, allowing only properly
formatted posts. Followups are required to be set strictly out of the
group and into the appropriate group in the news.admin.net-abuse.*
hierachy."

<http://www.killfile.org/~tskirvin/nana/charter/nanas.html>

news.admin.net-abuse.policy (robomoderated)
"News.admin.net-abuse.policy is a moderated forum for DISCUSSION OF
POLICY and site-management issues related to net abuse. Possible
topics include Acceptable Use Policies, what actions should be taken
against abusers, discussion of third-party cancel messages, possible
actions against abusive sites such as rogue site declarations,
discussion of what is and is not net abuse, and so forth."
Crossposting is not allowed here, and the subject must contain some
sort of topic tag.

<http://www.killfile.org/~tskirvin/nana/charter/nanap.html>

news.admin.net-abuse.email
"News.admin.net-abuse.email is a forum for DISCUSSION OF POSSIBLE
ABUSES OF E-MAIL. Possible topics include mailbombing,
denial-of-service attacks, "listserv bombs", unsolicited and/or
unwanted mail, email address lists, mailing list abuse, large-scale
mailings in general, chain letters, "email viruses" such as Good
Times, filtering software such as procmail, and so forth. Flames and
other personal attacks received through email are not on-topic, unless
they are related to another form of abuse." Please DO NOT post
reports and sightings here.

<http://www.killfile.org/~tskirvin/nana/charter/nanae.html>

news.admin.net-abuse.usenet
"News.admin.net-abuse.usenet is a forum for DISCUSSION OF POSSIBLE
ABUSES OF USENET (as defined in news.announce.newusers). Possible
topics include spamming or Excessive Multi-Posting (EMP), Excessive
Cross-Posting (ECP), Usenet chain letters such as MAKE.MONEY.FAST,
forged or third-party cancellations, broken Usenet gateways, forgery
of another user, forged approvals in moderated groups, massively
crossposted "flametrolls", abuse of the newsgroup creation system,
general purpose netiquette, and so forth." Please DO NOT post reports
and sightings here.

<http://www.killfile.org/~tskirvin/nana/charter/nanau.html>

news.admin.net-abuse.misc
"News.admin.net-abuse.misc is a forum for DISCUSSION of possible net
abuse NOT COVERED BY THE REST OF THE NEWS.ADMIN.NET-ABUSE.* HIERARCHY.
Possible topics include ping-storming, site aliasing, denial of
service attacks, and anything else that DOES NOT FIT INTO THE OTHER
FORUMS in the news.admin.net-abuse.* hierarchy." Please DO NOT post
reports and sightings here.

<http://www.killfile.org/~tskirvin/nana/charter/nanam.html>

Related Newsgroups:

alt.spam
A less widely used newsgroup, this newsgroup can also be somewhat more
friendly, or at least less confrontational, and is at least lower
traffic. Some posters may find it an easier place to have a
conversation about what to do about spam than the network abuse
newsgroups.

news.admin.censorship
This is a forum for discussion of all aspects of censorship and free
speech issues relating to news administration/Usenet from all sources,
specifically including the government, system and news adminstrators
and other users. This newsgroup is intended for discussing censorship
issues directly related to netnews, although more general censorship
topics do tend to appear.

misc.legal.computing
This group is for the discussion of legal aspects of computers, or
places where computers or computer users bump into the law, such as
electronic communications privacy laws; anti-trust; monopolies;
license agreements; look and feel copyrights; Secret Service; BBS
raids; and anything else remotely related.

[Russ Allbery]

shall slide in due time, seems to imply the following things,
relating to the punishment and destruction to which these wicked
Israelites were exposed. That they were always exposed to destruction;
as one that stands or walks in slippery places is always exposed to
fall. This is implied in the manner of their destruction coming upon
them, being represented by their foot sliding. The same is expressed,
Psalm 72:18. "Surely thou didst set them in slippery places; thou
castedst them down into destruction."

It implies, that they were always exposed to sudden unexpected
destruction. As he that walks in slippery places is every moment liable
to fall, he cannot foresee one moment whether he shall stand or fall the
next; and when he does fall, he falls at once without warning: Which is
also expressed in Psalm 73:18,19. "Surely thou didst set them in
slippery places; thou castedst them down into destruction: How are they
brought into desolation as in a moment!"

Another thing implied is, that they are liable to fall of themselves,
without being thrown down by the hand of another; as he that stands or
walks on slippery ground needs nothing but his own weight to throw him
down.

That the reason why they are not fallen already and do not fall now is
only that God's appointed time is not come. For it is said, that when
that due time, or appointed time comes, their foot shall slide. Then
they shall be left to fall, as they are inclined by their own weight.
God will not hold them up in these slippery places any longer, but will
let them go; and then, at that very instant, they shall fall into
destruction; as he that stands on such slippery declining ground, on the
edge of a pit, he cannot stand alone, when he is let go he immediately
falls and is lost. The observation from the words that I would now
insist upon is this. -- "There is nothing that keeps wicked men at any
one moment out of hell, but the

[Russ Allbery]

or with the angels, nor must he be ignorant of both sides of his
nature; but he must know both.

419. I will not allow man to depend upon himself, or upon another, to the
end that, being without a resting-place and without repose.

420. If he exalt himself, I humble him; if he humble himself, I exalt him;
and I always contradict him, till he understands that he is an
incomprehensible monster.

421. I blame equally those who choose to praise man, those who choose to
blame him, and those who choose to amuse themselves; and I can only approve
of those who seek with lamentation.

422. It is good to be tired and wearied by the vain search after the true
good, that we may stretch out our arms to the Redeemer.

423. Contraries. After having shown the vileness and the greatness of
man.--Let man now know his value. Let him love himself, for there is in him
a nature capable of good; but let him not for this reason love the vileness
which is in him. Let him despise himself, for this capacity is barren; but
let him not therefore despise this natural capacity. Let him hate himself,
let him love himself; he has within him the capacity of knowing the truth
and of being happy, but he possesses no truth, either constant or
satisfactory.

I would then lead man to the desire of finding truth; to

[Russ Allbery]

and unworthy of God, God made Himself man
to unite Himself to us. No more is required to persuade men who have this
disposition in their heart, and who have this knowledge of their duty and of
their inefficiency.

287. Those whom we see to be Christians without the knowledge of the
prophets and evidences, nevertheless judge of their religion as well as
those who have that knowledge. They judge of it by the heart, as others
judge of it by the intellect. God himself inclines them to believe, and thus
they are most effectively convinced.

I confess indeed that one of those Christians who believe without proofs
will not, perhaps, be capable of convincing an infidel who will say the same
of himself. But those who know the proofs of religion will prove without
difficulty that such a believer is truly inspired by God, though he cannot
prove it himself.

For God having said in His prophecies (which are undoubtedly prophecies)
that in the reign of Jesus Christ He would spread His spirit abroad among
nations, and that the youths and maidens