RFC: Removing example.com as a testpoint (Was: Re: [SURBL-Discuss] Re: No install Problems with 0.10)

Simon Byrnand simon at igrin.co.nz
Tue Apr 20 13:09:44 CEST 2004


At 11:54 20/04/2004, Jeff Chan wrote:

>On Sunday, April 18, 2004, 3:23:20 PM, Jeff Chan wrote:
> > On Wednesday, April 14, 2004, 2:30:40 PM, Jeff Chan wrote:
> >> On Wednesday, April 14, 2004, 1:27:01 PM, Justin Mason wrote:
> >>> Ah -- I've just realised, that will be a pretty big problem ;)
>
> >>> Jeff, can we change that to another domain? example.com is widely 
> used for
> >>> the purpose it's intended for, an "example domain" to use in example 
> URLs,
> >>> example email addrs, example whatever.  Adding it to SURBL as the test
> >>> domain means that it now gets another, unpleasant meaning -- a good way
> >>> to get your mail into the spam folder.  I don't think that'll be
> >>> a good side-effect. :(
>
> >>> Something more like the GTUBE ( http://SpamAssassin.org/gtube/ ) -- ie
> >>> a domain that doesn't already exist and is not going to crop up for other
> >>> reasons.  Something like http://surbl-org-permanent-test-point.com/ ?
>
> >> Hi Justin,
> >> Good point.  We added example.com by request, and we've just had
> >> another request for example.tld.  [...]
>
> >> HOWEVER, *other RBLs* are not used to block on message bodies and
> >> example.com is unlikely to be used as a sender domain.   But it
> >> could appear in a message body URI as someone's example.
>
> > Does anyone have any other comments on the issue of removing
> > example.com or changing it to something really obscure like
> > the http://surbl-org-permanent-test-point.com/ which Justin
> > suggested above.  If I don't hear any other feedback I'll go
> > ahead and make that change Monday and announce it.
>
> > This change will require people to update any test suites that
> > are expecting example.com to be in the SURBL lists.
>
>Are there any more comments on removing example.com from the
>SURBL testpoints?
>
>Otherwise I will probably change "example.com" to
>"surbl-org-permanent-test-point.com", and document and announce
>the change.
>
>Please let me know if you have any objections or other comments.

Sounds fine to me....(since no one else is commenting :)

The whole idea of surbl relies on the fact that there is no legitimate way 
that a spam url would be found in a genuine message. This isn't too hard 
considering how obscure and obfuscated most spammer domain names 
are...they're not the kind of thing that you'd write by accident in casual 
conversation :)

However something obvious like example.com is something that can (and is) 
written in non-spam messages sometimes...so definately needs to go...

Regards,
Simon



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