List Mail with Viruses?

[Parker, Ron]

> -----Original Message-----
> From: zscoundrel [mailto:zscoundrel at kc.rr.com]

> Road Runner has launched a Virus Filtering initiative for all inbound 
> Road Runner e-mail, after a successful trial late in 2002. Virus 
> filtering is becoming increasingly necessary as viruses, worms, and 
> similiar issues are quite destructive to computers and the 
> Road Runner 
> network alike. E-mail is one of the main ways that viruses 
> spread across 
> the Internet.

Leaving out the unimportant parts saying that, "viruses...are quite
destructive...to...the Road Runner network" explains a lot.  I keep
forgetting the MS and Time-Warner were both originally part of RoadRunner.
Who knows MS still may be.  

Since the beginning the RR servers have been running MS servers and
software.  It wouldn't surprise me if processing an email that contains a
virus would be enough to infect a Windows server running Exchange.  I do
recall a big mess up a few years ago that took out email for a number of
weeks even with an MS SWAT team coming out to work on it.  (I didn't
complain too much, a sympathetic tech offered me two free months out of the
blue for the hassle right after I had received a free month for very minor
disruption.)  

If sendmail is considered dangerous to your health, what about Outlook or
Exchange?

BTW in case you aren't aware RR stores your passwords as clear-text and they
don't mind reading them back to you over the phone.  I consider that a
bigger security hole than sendmail or Outlook.