On Sun, 14 Dec 2003, Philip Miller wrote:
I don't trust my ISP to get it right with regard to their mail server. They
have some large number of MTAs which make outbound connections, and 1 or 2
of them are blacklisted. Because of stupid policies enforced by other
providers (AOL), I already cannot connect out directly, so I am forced to
forward my mail through smtp.comcast.net. This means I have a choice between
not reaching certain ASRG members whose servers use RBL or not reaching
friends and family on AOL. I'm not going to reconfigure a mailserver used by
multiple people every time I want to send a message to AOL or ASRG.
About virtual hosts: I am a student. I am a minor. I do not have ready
access to a credit card to pay for such service. Whatever I can't get for
free online, I can't get at a "ridiculously cheap" cost. I happen to have
broadband access, and I run a server of my own, for utility and education.
If I were forcibly prevented from using it, I would not be happy, and I'm
sure many others are in a situation similar to this.
It is important that "consent" include "consent of the sending AS"
expressed somehow. It could be lifting a block on port 25, or some
mechanism enforced only at the receipient end. But anything suggesting
that the origin AS should not have to provide consent for sending to port
25 is to create a right to spam which will be exceedingly difficult to
counter.
The current situation is that very few ISP even bother to block owned
machines. Surely that can't be BCP. BCP must be to forward port 25 packets
only for customers who have asked for such service. This is necessary to
protect address blocks (other customers) from loss of service.
Should Comcast enforce a block on port 25, and charge unreasonably for
unblocking it, then users of Comcast should explore using other MTAs. I
notice that smtp.com is already in the business of providing smtp relays,
and should a large operator like Comcast create a larger need, there would
no doubt be other players.
As a practical matter, indivduals using sendmail can use the mailertable
feature to direct messages directly to the remote MTA, but fall back to
a specified relay MTA should their access to the remote MTA be blocked
(for example, by receivers that reject mail apparent dial-up lines).
Daniel Feenberg
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