(OT) Google groups abuse

[Richard Tobin]

I find I am receiving lots of unwanted mail because someone called
"(e-mail address removed)" has apparently arranged for me to be mailed
all the messages sent to a Google Group called "Programmer's HQ" which
he advertised (with a different name) in comp.lang.c a few weeks ago.

I'm not surprised that some idiot has done such a thing, but I am
surprised that Google allows people to be signed up without any checking.

-- Richard

 

[Ulrich Eckhardt]

I find I am receiving lots of unwanted mail because someone called
"(e-mail address removed)" has apparently arranged for me to be mailed
all the messages sent to a Google Group called "Programmer's HQ" which
he advertised (with a different name) in comp.lang.c a few weeks ago.

I'm not surprised that some idiot has done such a thing, but I am
surprised that Google allows people to be signed up without any checking.

I already reported that to their abuse desks, but haven't gotten an answer
except from some automated answering system. Please do the same, this
behaviour is untenable.

Uli

 

[Tim Prince]

I already reported that to their abuse desks, but haven't gotten an answer
except from some automated answering system. Please do the same, this
behaviour is untenable.

Uli

I got a slightly more personalized answer from them, saying
(paraphrased) they don't know how to control abusive use of their
service, and don't make any attempt. If you can determine the ISP of
the submittor, report the abuse to them as well. If that ISP doesn't
show up, with headers turned on, it's clearly spam, not that I know how
to set a filter accordingly.

 

[Thad Smith]

I find I am receiving lots of unwanted mail because someone called
"(e-mail address removed)" has apparently arranged for me to be mailed
all the messages sent to a Google Group called "Programmer's HQ" which
he advertised (with a different name) in comp.lang.c a few weeks ago.

I received the same. Besides being signed up without permission, I was
dismayed that Google doesn't identify the group in the subject line,
like Yahoo does.

Thad

 

[Zara]

I find I am receiving lots of unwanted mail because someone called
"(e-mail address removed)" has apparently arranged for me to be mailed
all the messages sent to a Google Group called "Programmer's HQ" which
he advertised (with a different name) in comp.lang.c a few weeks ago.

I'm not surprised that some idiot has done such a thing, but I am
surprised that Google allows people to be signed up without any checking.

-- Richard

I signed into the group, and the signed out of it. It works, no more
messages.

BTW, I think this group is more the caprice of a childish student more
than a malicious attempt to spam.

 

[Robert Gamble]

I find I am receiving lots of unwanted mail because someone called
"(e-mail address removed)" has apparently arranged for me to be mailed
all the messages sent to a Google Group called "Programmer's HQ" which
he advertised (with a different name) in comp.lang.c a few weeks ago.

I was signed up and I know of others here that were as well. I was
actually made a supervisor/admin of the group, all without any say from
myself. I sent an email to "anoopkammaran" indicating I wanted nothing
to do with his silly venture and unsubscribed from the group, no more
emails.

I'm not surprised that some idiot has done such a thing, but I am
surprised that Google allows people to be signed up without any checking.

Given what Google has done to the medium so far I am not at all
surprised.

Robert Gamble

 

[dcduring]

1. You can help yourself avoid this kind of problem by going to
"manage your subscriptions" on the Google Groups website and making
sure that the box that allows a group owner to simply put you in a
group without your agreeing is not checked.

2. I am not sure what legitimate purpose is served by ever allowing
group owners to make people members of a group without their permission
outside of a work environment. It might connect to some approach to
advertising or facilitating the creation of user groups, but it seems
much too subject to abuse. The opt-out mechanism, although not hidden,
is also not obvious and forces a user to come to the Google Groups
site. Google needs to change this approach and find some other way to
make money from making Google Groups available for free.

 

[Richard Tobin]

1. You can help yourself avoid this kind of problem by going to
"manage your subscriptions" on the Google Groups website and making
sure that the box that allows a group owner to simply put you in a
group without your agreeing is not checked.

How can I "manage my subscriptions" when I don't have any?

-- Richard

 

[Markus Becker]

How can I "manage my subscriptions" when I don't have any?

How would you go about writing something on a piece of paper,
if you hadn't any?

Get some (paper)? (or 'a subscription' in this case).

Markus

 

[Richard Tobin]

Get some (paper)? (or 'a subscription' in this case).

Are you seriously suggesting I should subscribe to the company that's
spamming me so I can ask them not to?

-- Richard

 

[Alan Balmer]

How would you go about writing something on a piece of paper,
if you hadn't any?

Get some (paper)? (or 'a subscription' in this case).

Markus

WTF? Is Google running a protection racket? You have to sign up with
them to be protected from their groupies?

 

[the_cacc]

Are you seriously suggesting I should subscribe to the company that's
spamming me so I can ask them not to?

Oh perish the thought you have to do something to help yourself! How
about spamming sci.math with your problems, that'll work. Duh...

 

[Alan Balmer]

Oh perish the thought you have to do something to help yourself! How
about spamming sci.math with your problems, that'll work. Duh...

Hmm... Perhaps I should help myself by simply filtering all mail which
originates from googlegroups.com. That would work, and eliminate a
bunch of clueless posters, as well.

 

[Mark McIntyre]

Oh perish the thought you have to do something to help yourself! How
about spamming sci.math with your problems, that'll work. Duh...

So you /are/ seriously suggesting that one should subscribe to the
spammer's mailing list, in order to ask them not to spam you.

What a cretinous thing to suggest.