Anoying Peter Whalley Spam messages.

[Aleksandar Milivojevic]

David Hoffman wrote:
> I have a small sign next to my doorbell on the front of my house that
> says "No Solicitors". Quite often I see people walking down the
> street, going door to door. They get to my house, walk up to the front
> door, and (MOST of the time) they turn around and walk away. When I
> invite friends to come over to my house, they walk up to my door, and
> ring the doorbell. How does this work? It is simple
> challenge/response. (My friends don't come over to the house, see the
> sign and then leave)

No, it is not chanllenge/response.  You do not present challange.  And 
you do not require response.  If you remove the sign, and install device 
on your doorbell that will when solicitors and friends press the 
doorbell (or before pressing it) sound "if you are not solicitor say 
kazuba", and then they respond with "kazuba" in order to be allowed to 
proceed, than it would be C/R system.  You present challenge (trivial 
challenge, but still challenge), and await for response.

The system you have in place is based on assumption that most people are 
polite.  Computer equivalent would be placing "no spam" in your mail 
server's greeting.  It wouldn't be very effective, since there is no 
such thing as polite spammers.  Solicitors that walk away from your door 
when seeing the sign have shown an act of politeness no matter what you 
think about solicitors in general.

-- 
Aleksandar Milivojevic <amilivojevic at pbl.ca>    Pollard Banknote Limited
Systems Administrator                           1499 Buffalo Place
Tel: (204) 474-2323 ext 276                     Winnipeg, MB  R3T 1L7