>>From: Stu Osborn, ('71)

Re: Hijacks, Spam and Critters
To: Mary Anne Lauby ('73)
    Hijacking and using valid email addresses is one thing,
Mary Anne, but spamming using a domain name that isn't 
registered to you is quite another. The first problem is 
highly illegal and involves what's called a "man in the 
middle attack". It is accomplished using network monitoring 
tools to discover valid email addresses and their associated 
IP addresses. Once this information is obtained by the 
hacker, the TCP network packets are intercepted and replaced 
with different packets and sent out on the wire to their 
intended (or altered) destination. This attack is combated 
by ISPs who encrypt network traffic from their mailbox 
servers by using SSL (Secure Sockets Layer) so that network 
"sniffers" cannot read the packets.
    The second issue (your problem) apparently isn't illegal 
(yet) and is very hard to track since tracing the source of 
spam requires much time and effort. The spammers draw up an 
email and then mass message all of the public email servers 
such as AOL, Yahoo and MSN. When the messages reach end 
users, the sender’s address has an indecipherable name (for 
example, jbnskk@graydog.org) because on their journey they 
have passed though thousands of servers around the globe, 
called "relay" stations. Each time these messages are 
relayed, their source domain names are changed and through 
chance some of them come through as messages with your 
domain name. These messages are not being sent by you of 
course, but pass through the same email "relay" stations 
that your mail server uses. To combat this, you have to 
track and report the IP addresses and locations of as many 
email relays that you can determine are being used to send 
the offending messages that have your domain name to the 
public. Not many ordinary people have the tools, skills or 
time to do this. The FBI used similar methods to track down 
a German schoolboy who was charged with unleashing the 
latest worm virus on the internet. Very, very time consuming 
but it can be done.

To: Pam Ehinger Nassen ('67)
    Castor oil is expensive, Pam... Here in Bothell, I took 
care of my mole problem quickly and organically for free by
placing a big wad of human hair at every mole entrance I
could find. I picked up that tip listening to a radio 
program called, "Gardening with Cisco", one of the local
gardening gurus here in Western Washington. I had those
little things on the run in no time after washing some of
that hair down their holes. Apparently the moles think that
a human is in their holes with them and they skedaddle
pronto. It might work with gophers, too. You can usually get
enough hair at any barbershop for free. The hair eventually
composted into the soil but not after until those little
burrowers ploughed under my fence into my neighbor's yard.
Then of course I shared the method with him to clear my
conscience.

-Stu Osborn, ('71)