[SURBL-Discuss] 20050615 embedded image spam

[List Mail User]

>...
>Hello ---
>
>Below is a fresh list of dates and domains.  All times are Pacific (GMT - 7).
>
>Kind regards,
>
>Sean Sowell
>
>...
>20050615-1132 inphonic.com
>...
>
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>
	Most of your list is recognizable spammers, but I've actually bought
from inphonic and can recommend them.  Not only are they often the least
expensive (re. the largest rebate on free cell phones) place to get most
US carriers' cell phones (Amazon comes in as, surprising to me, a close
second place usually), but their service is very good, and they have never
sent me any email except a single follow-up after each transaction.

	Are you certain the user didn't call one of their telephone numbers?
They use *many* company names and many domains - with different and *hidden*
pricing structures.  It is tricky to find the best price from them (they may
have a half dozen different prices for the same thing, depending on the path
you take and the cookies you accept to get to a page - very disingenuous, but
legal - I often tell people to just use Amazon, whose pricing is easier to
deal with - and far simpler).  Once you deal with any of the "front" companies
everything later comes from the parent - inphonic.com (and even worst - they
seem to have "affiliates" who do re-directs and mirror pages).

	It also seems unlikely to be an "affiliate" spam case, since all
the affilaites I have seen use a different domain to start, then mark your
session with one or more cookies (it is far cheaper to go direct, don't walk
the tree and accept no cookies - then you usually get offered the lowest of
the available prices).  Also, I think they are the single largest reseller
for both Cingular and T-Mobile (and they were for AT&T, pre-merger).


	Paul Shupak
	track at plectere.com