[GRLUG] Comcast and net neutrality

[Greg Folkert]

On Wed, 2007-10-24 at 10:21 -0400, Judith Alta wrote:
> Starting several months ago emails to me bounced when sent from
> Comcast. I contacted Netfirms, my domain host, and they said that it
> was on Comcast's end, as they had done everything they could to get
> those emails to come through. So apparently I was not alone.
> 
> Haven't had anyone tell me for some little time now that my emails are
> bouncing, and I've been getting email from people whose posts to me
> had bounced before.
> 
> Judith Alta Kidder

About June/July/August, Comcast started using rules that include:

        "Sender Domain must currently exist and be resolvable"
        "Sender must exist upon query to sending domain"
        "Sender appears to be UCBE account on sending domain, put in
        SPAM folder"
        "Sender must *NOT* be a dynamically assigned IP"
        "Sender IP must have a reverse-pointer name not looking
        non-batch created name (ie: 202-123-45-67.grr.mi.somedomain.dom
        == bad. somedynamicname.grr.mi.somedomain.dom == good. Even
        though they are equivalent.)"
        "If content looks like SPAM, even though it is a valid report
        from a report system with lotsa of apparently random info, but
        is not random line noise, it is SPAM"
        "Too many 'To:' addresses or NO 'To:' addresses, possibly bounce
        or put in SPAM"
        "Plus, use ALL SARE rules for SPAM detection"
        "Plus, use some custom rules, addressing customer complaints"
        "DKIM, SPF, SenderID, <insert other email stuffs> doesn't mean
        crap, as spammers are using them as well"

I've spent about 25 hours chasing down a Operation Phone Number, its
invalid, I got another one, its the "long distance" number for the toll
free support line. Which then gives me the first invalid number.

Sending to Comcast is a serious PITA. Getting REAL people on the phone
to resolve these issue are IMPOSSIBLE.

I work for a company that *DOES TRULY* Follow the Federal Government
Rules and Regulations.

-------------------
Every single e-mail recipient has done the opt-in.
Every single e-mail sent, has a unique "unsubscribe" address.
Every single e-mail sent, has an "unsubscribe" https link, that works.
Every single e-mail sent, has "unsubscribe" instructions.
Every single e-mail sent. complies with *ALL* Federal Guidelines for
Bulk/Commercial/non-Profit e-mails
-------------------

Our systems send out over 1 Million e-mails a day (average). I can run a
report with all of the subscribe info the user provided, including
unique identifier info and either proof of "purchase of something" or
"donation of something" or "request for daily info" and the fact they in
fact *DID* the opt-in, as we (systematically) do not allow the "check
box" to be pre-filled.

From those e-mails, we still get about 1000 "Violations of SPAM/UCE/UBE"
policy from various Internet Mail Providers, notably AOL, Comcast, MSN,
Earthlink.

Every month I have to go through the efforts of proving we are not
sending SPAM. They then tell their users of the resolutions. The users
promptly ignore the resolutions and report the stuff as SPAM again and
again and again.

We cannot REMOVE them from the subscriptions, we are forbidden to do
that by our customers as a part of policy and contracts. We can ask them
to remove these reporters, but most do nothing.
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