What is Spam?

Spam is basically the digital equivalent of junk mail, unsolicited e-mail (or news postings) pushing a point. Be it an ad for a used PC, or an urge to vote on a proposition. Just as you don't like getting stacks of coupons, ads, and catalogs in your mailbox, you are annoyed when you check your email and find a stack of messages from someone or some company trying to sell you something. But technology marches on, and the low cost and ease of email has not been overlooked by direct marketers. So what can you do about it? Well, as with real junk mail, the easiest thing to do is simply throw it away. If you didn't ask for it, sign up on a mailing list related to it, or leave your e-mail address on a web form asking for more information on it, it's spam!

For more information, see the following:

• net-abuse-faq/spam-faq
• Title 47, Section 227 of the United States Code (Regulates the use of "automatic telephone dialing system[s]" to make unsolicited (un-asked-for) advertisments.)
• Advertising on Usenet: How To Do It, How Not To Do It

The following violations of "netiquette" are grounds for immediate suspension of service pending investigation by Interlync and will result in termination of the account(s) the investigation determines to have originated or transmitted these types of traffic.

1. Posting a single article or substantially similar articles to an excessive number of newsgroups (i.e., more than 20) or continued posting of articles which are off-topic (e.g., off-topic according to the newsgroup charter or the article provokes complaints from the regular readers of the newsgroup for being off-topic).
2. Sending unsolicited mass emailings (i.e., to more than 25 users) which provoke complaints from the recipients.
3. Engaging in either (1) or (2) from a provider other than Interlync and using an account on Interlync as a mail drop for responses.
4. Continued harassment of other individuals on the Internet after being asked to stop by those individuals and by Interlync.
5. Impersonating another user or otherwise falsifying one's user name in email, Usenet postings, on IRC, or with any other Internet service. (This does not preclude the use of nicknames in IRC or the use of anonymous remailer services.)
6. Use of IRC "bots" on systems outside of Interlync that do not allow them.

Users whose accounts are terminated for any of the above infractions are also responsible for the cost of labor to cleanup and respond to complaints incurred by Interlync