Messages and other data exchanged between individuals using computers in a network. An e-mail system allows computer users to send text, graphics, and sometimes sounds and animated images to other users. It developed from large organizations using an internal messaging system as a communication link among employees. The mass provision of e-mail addresses for private individuals by Internet service providers led to the development of e-mail as a system to supplement or replace communication by letter.
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In its original charter the following examples of "on-topic" areas were listed:
Eventually, by mutual consent, it was also determined that the following were also "on-topic":
In recent years the group has been subject to several attacks, most prominently denial-of-service attacks using hipcrime.
Later that month it went to vote and passed 451 to 28.
In September 2002 it was proposed that a subgroup, news.admin.net-abuse.email.blocklists be created.
or C&C warning is a satirical warning that a usenet posting or other writing may contain humorous material. The C&C warning originated with the usenet group news.admin.net-abuse.email, but has spread to other groups.
The warning is an admonition to the reader to secure liquid beverages (particularly hot ones) and cats in case uncontrollable laughter breaks out upon reading the article. Chickenboner: A minor spammer. Named after a colorful and humorous description one participant made of spammers living in trailers and eating at Kentucky fried chicken. Cut it out, Ron: (Alternatively, Cut it out, Ritzman!) A standard response to a posting that is suspected to be a troll. Named after a regular poster, Ron Ritzman, who often wrote humorous trolls and operated the (now defunct) website supertroll.com. Frea Speach: Spammers claim the right to distribute unsolicited bulk mail as part of their right to free speech under the United States' Constitution. After one such person repeatedly mis-spelled it as "free speach" , newsgroup participants who argued that the right to free speech refers to the right to not be censored by the U.S. Government and nothing to do with the right to employ the services of private individuals and organizations to distribute bulk mail, took to referring to this claimed right as "frea speach", deliberately mis-spelling it partly as a parody and partly to distinguish it from actual free speech rights. Gray hat: An ISP whose stance in spam matters is somewhat ambiguous. It may terminate some spamming customers but not all of them. Compare black hat and white hat. Hat check: A request to determine the reputation of a given ISP in spam matters. See also black-, gray- and white hat. Joe job : The act of sending out spam made to look like it came from a person or organization which the spammer dislikes. Spamhaus, SpamCop and other anti-spam organizations are often the victims of these, as are some individual anti-spammers. Being Joe-jobbed is usually taken as a sign that the victim must have really hurt some spammer. Lumber Cartel : A conspiracy theory that claimed anti-spammers were secretly paid agents of lumber companies. LART : A blunt instrument used to metaphorically whack clue into a clueless person. Large mallets and anvils are popular for these, the latter preferably launched from orbit.