Re: [alac] GAO Report on Domain Names

["John R Levine" <johnl@xxxxxxxx>]

>> John and I have long disagreed on the utility of WHOIS in stopping
>> spam.  I think it only catches the marginal spammers, because the
>> high-volume folks have already figured out how to use fake info.  I
>> also think the IP WHOIS is more likely to be useful in solving
>> technical problems than domain name WHOIS.

I know people, in the US and elsewhere, who tell me that they use WHOIS
info all the time to track down real spammers, but Wendy apparently thinks
that they're lying to me.

IP WHOIS is certainly useful, but I don't understand the assumption that
domain WHOIS can all be fake, but IP WHOIS is all true.  Why should that
be so?  You need IP addresses to publish stuff just as much as you need
domains, probably more.

Regards,
John Levine, johnl@xxxxxxxx, Primary Perpetrator of "The Internet for Dummies",
Information Superhighwayman wanna-be, http://www.johnlevine.com, Mayor
"I dropped the toothpaste", said Tom, crestfallenly.