[Politech] Anonymous domain name registrations... and spam problems [priv][sp]

From: Declan McCullagh (declan@private)
Date: Mon Jan 05 2004 - 22:10:56 PST

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    From: "Bazeley, Michael" <MBazeley@private>
    To: "'Declan McCullagh'" <declan@private>
    Subject: RE: [Politech] Semi-anonymous domain name registrations? [priv]
    Date: Mon, 5 Jan 2004 18:11:27 -0800
    
    ARIN has been debating this issue and is to vote on a policy change soon.
    http://www.arin.net/policy/2003_3.html
    
    Michael Bazeley
    
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    Date: 5 Jan 2004 20:08:50 -0500
    Message-ID: <Pine.BSI.4.56.0401051950440.22504@private>
    From: "John R Levine" <johnl@private>
    To: "Declan McCullagh" <declan@private>
    Cc: "Thomas Leavitt" <thomas@private>
    Subject: Re: [Politech] Semi-anonymous domain name registrations? [priv]
    
     >   If this is at all permissible, the registrar's should be allowed to do
     > this, rather than a third party
    
    A little poking around makes it pretty clear that if DBP isn't the same
    people as maddogdomains.com, godaddy.com, wildwestdomains.com, and
    secureserver.net, they're snuggled up real close.  Godaddy is one of the
    largest registrars around.
    
    Despite what is as far as I can tell a sincere anti-spam and anti-abuse
    policy, every single DBP domain I have encountered is engaged in spamming,
    promotion of fraudulent goods and schemes, and other partly or totally
    illegal stuff.  Anyone who thinks that a DBP registration is really
    private should also read their terms of service which among other things
    lets them cancel your registration for any reason during the first 30
    days, they can reveal all of your information if they think it would cost
    them any money not to do so, and you have no recourse if they do.
    
    I understand the arguments for anonymous speech, but the reality on
    today's Internet is that anonymous speech is 99.99% abuse and 0.01%
    percent persecuted political figures.  I agree that anoymous speech should
    be possible, but that doesn't mean that it has to be easy or that
    anonymizing services need to accept everyone who wants to use them.
    Remember, the publisher of the Federalist Papers knew perfectly well who
    the authors were, but had the commitment and integrity to be willing to
    take the heat if the authorities took offense.
    
     > http://www.domainsbyproxy.com/
     >
     > Domains by Proxy, Inc.
    
    
    Regards,
    John Levine, johnl@private, Primary Perpetrator of "The Internet for Dummies",
    Information Superhighwayman wanna-be, http://iecc.com/johnl, Sewer Commissioner
    "I dropped the toothpaste", said Tom, crestfallenly.
    
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    From: gme <george@private>
    Subject: Re: [Politech] Semi-anonymous domain name registrations? [priv]
    Date: Mon, 5 Jan 2004 19:55:03 -0500
    To: Declan McCullagh <declan@private>
    
    Declan,
    
    This is nothing new, really.
    
    GoDaddy.com has been pushing DomainsByProxy for a while now.
    
    And, one doesn't need to pay Domains By Proxy to achieve a certain level of 
    pseudonymonous registrations, either.
    
    Simply open a P.O. Box (or call-box through Mail Boxes Etc., etc.), use a 
    voice-mail only telephone number, a throw-away Email address from 
    Sneakemail.com, and use the registered name of "first name" "last initial" 
    (JOHN D.).
    
    IANAL, but from reading the ICANN guidelines, doing the above would be 
    perfectly legal (and in fact, I have several domains registered that very 
    same way.)
    
    Regards,
    --
    George M. Ellenburg <george@private>
    PGP Key ID: 0x459965D8
    *** Proud to be 100% Microsoft-Free ***
    
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    Date: Tue, 06 Jan 2004 14:34:30 +1100
    Subject: Re: [Politech] Semi-anonymous domain name registrations? [priv]
    From: Raena Armitage <raena@private>
    To: Declan McCullagh <declan@private>
    Message-ID: <BC2077F6.1864A%raena@private>
    In-Reply-To: <6.0.0.22.2.20040105184847.03269ea8@private>
    
    Hi Declan,
    
    This isn't new -- GoDaddy has offered a Domains By Proxy option with their
    registration for some months now, if not a year or more.
    
    Whois is next to useless these days anyway; at least this way someone
    mailing your whois address for info can still get through to you.  I think
    it's worth nine bucks a year.
    
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    Subject: RE: [Politech] Semi-anonymous domain name registrations? [priv]
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    Date: Mon, 5 Jan 2004 21:45:15 -0800
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    Message-ID: <9B52AA04500C5F468E3B6EEADA7490851004AF@private>
    From: "Clinton D. Fein" <clinton.fein@private>
    To: "Declan McCullagh" <declan@private>
    X-VBS-Filter-Version: 1.14 (well.com modified) (smtp)
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    Quite a formidable service. And on top of it, they also are able to
    clarify activities and definitions which have defied law and policy
    makers for ages.
    
    For instance, you dare "even think about" using their service for
    activities that are illegal or "morally objectionable" which include but
    are not limited to obscenity (do they apply the Miller standard, one
    wonders), harmful to minors (would that include a sermon by Pat
    Robertson?) or racist or ethnically objectionable activities (would that
    include creating an online gallery of the History of the Ku Klux Klan
    during Black History month or exploring the etymology of words like
    "nigger" or "honky"? Or, one again wonders, does the service allow the
    use of words like spic and span to denote clean, but not in the context
    of a racial slur?)
    
    Can you see these guys rejecting a request to turn over identities on
    these shaky grounds, let alone a subpoena? Just the people I want
    protecting my privacy.
    
    Happy New Year!
    
    Clinton
    _________________________
    
    Clinton Fein
    Editor & Publisher
    Annoy.com
    555 Florida Street, Suite 407
    San Francisco, CA  94110
    Phone: 415-552-7655
    Fax: 415-552-7656
    http://annoy.com/
    _________________________
    
    
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    From: "steelhead-mobile" <bill@ries-knight.net>
    To: "Declan McCullagh" <declan@private>
    Cc: "Steelhead" <bill@ries-knight.net>
    References: <6.0.0.22.2.20040105184847.03269ea8@private>
    Subject: a report on Domains by proxy Re: [Politech] Semi-anonymous domain 
    name registrations? [priv]
    Date: Mon, 5 Jan 2004 20:06:22 -0800
    
    I recently had an exchange with the folks at Domains by proxy.  A spammer
    was using them to hide and after only a week of daily email forwards
    regarding the spammer, they sent a notice indicating that the domain was not
    under their control, all they did was shift it to the open registrar.
    
    We were able, because they opened the registration information, to get the
    domain shut off.
    
    Copied below here is the response they provided,  they do provide anonymity,
    but they will open the registration info on proof of a TOS violation.
    
    I support Domains by Proxy and the anonymity they can provide, frustrating
    though it may be.
    
    Dear Sir or Madam,
    
    Thank you for contacting Domains by Proxy.  The domain listed in your spam
    complaint ( fahawn.com ) does not appear to be using our private
    registration services.  If you are receiving unsolicited email from this
    domain, please contact the registrar for further assistance.
    
    Please note that this domain may have recently had its services cancelled.
    If so, the registrar's WHOIS database may take up to 48 hours to reflect
    this cancellation.
    
    Thank you for your submission.
    
    Regards,
    Domains By Proxy
    Spam and Abuse Department
    
    
    *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *
    Bill Ries-Knight   ***   Stockton, CA.
    
    My views on spam and SCO
    http://www.ries-knight.net/
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