Re: But Facebook are not spammers

[Gadi Evron <ge () linuxbox org>]

On 5/23/10 8:42 PM, Paul Vixie wrote:
> ge () linuxbox org (Gadi Evron) writes:
>
> > > ...
> > ...
> > So, let me understand, as the web client in in fact their client, and
> > they provide a suggestion of what text should be sent if you are too
> > lazy to write your own, then it is spam? ...
>
> in my case, i didn't complain until a cron job at facebook resent this
> "invitation" because i hadn't answered it. the initial e-mail, coming as it
> does from facebook's web client, is borderline. subsequent reminders are
> clearly just spam. note that all of this crap comes to addresses i've never
> used for personal correspondance, and are clearly scraped out of the
> facebook-user's address book, and got there as a result of that user's
> other e-mail clients doing auto-scrape from mailing list postings.

Parsed by user request.
I am deeply concerned about the ammounts of data facebook has on each of 
us without us ever gettin gon it, by this feature alone. That does not 
make it not by user request.

> this makes facebook a spammer, textbook. opt-out isn't an exemption, no

No, it makes them feature-heavy on importing contact lists, with the 
user choosing actions to take.

> matter whether i can opt out by web or by e-mail. opt-out is 100% spam.

Facebook is out-doing itself by offering you to prevent their mail 
server from reaching out to you in the future by specific users' 
request. It is not opt-out in the spammer sense, and I have a feeling 
you would not view them as such spammers if they did not offer an 
"unsubscribe" option, which sounds fishy due to past experiences with 
spammers.

> facebook has no relationship with me and so they can't claim acquaintance
> as an exemption either. when they send me mail because one of their users
> clicks "add buddy" that's borderline. when they send me followup mail
> because i didn't answer, then that is spam, 100%, and inarguably so.

They are a tool used by the user. Who is the user to send you an email, 
you should ask.

The repeated request is done exactly as specified in the first email, 
and not forever -- much like any bounce/retry attempts. I am willing to 
call this borderline, but unless they keep it up forever (beyond the 
say, 30 days attemot), they are not spammers.

Call them something else. Spammers are clearly doing some definable 
evil, while what Facebook does you just don't like. Putting them in the 
same boat as these law breakers and abusers doesn't sit well with me, 
even IF I was to cede all your points.

        Gadi.
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