I love IP Tables....

jdow jdow at earthlink.net
Tue May 29 03:20:22 UTC 2007


From: "David G. Miller" <dave at davenjudy.org>
> From: "Mikkel L. Ellertson" <mikkel at infinity-ltd.com>
>> > David G. Miller wrote:
>>
>>> >> Bruno Wolff III <bruno at wolff.to> wrote:
>>> >>
>>>
>>>> >>> Hey, it's the US, anyone can sue anyone for anything. Whether you 
>>>> >>> could
>>>> >>> win would be another question. And even if you won, you probably 
>>>> >>> wouldn't
>>>> >>> make money on the deal.
>>>>
>>> >> Not saying this is the perfect solution but think about what happens 
>>> >> if
>>> >> we start holding people liable for the damages caused by their 
>>> >> zombified
>>> >> Windoze box...  Right now, they have almost no incentive to firewall
>>> >> their systems, have an effective anti-virus program running, etc.  If
>>> >> you could get sued for the damages your box inflicts on others, 
>>> >> people
>>> >> who don't know what they're doing might start *asking* their ISP to 
>>> >> stop
>>> >> them from doing any harm and let them know if there's a problem.
>>> >> This is as opposed to the current situation where everyone involved
>>> >> sticks their head firmly in the sand (or elsewhere) and decides it's
>>> >> somebody else's problem.  Turning a blind eye to bot nets and zombies 
>>> >> is
>>> >> just nuts.  The idiots who provide electricity and an internet
>>> >> connection to a bot or zombie need to get charged for the pain they
>>> >> allow others to get hit with.  They aren't victims; they're part of 
>>> >> the
>>> >> problem.
>>> >>
>>>     A better idea - hold the company that produced the defective
>> > software that allows this to happen. After all, they spent how much
>> > convincing people that all you need to do is "point and click" to
>> > administer a Windows box... (OK - with what they can spend on
>> > lawyers and their political clout, you couldn't win in the U.S.)
>>
> We don't hold a manufacturer of any other product liable for how their 
> product gets used.  Guns are probably the best example.  Although there 
> have been attempts, gun manufacturers aren't held liable for whatever use 
> their product is put to.  Likewise, as long as a gun owner takes customary 
> and reasonable precautions against unauthorized use (e.g., a gun safe, 
> locking away key components, etc.), we don't hold a gun owner liable if 
> some steals his gun and then uses it in a crime.  On the other hand, if a 
> gun owner doesn't take reasonable precautions and someone gets hurt, they 
> are not just liable but criminally culpable.
>
> My position is that most if not all of the people providing power and 
> connectivity (their system is p0wned by someone else) to zombified systems 
> are not taking "customary and reasonable" precautions to ensure their 
> computer isn't put to unauthorized use.  They should be held liable for 
> this.  They can either pony up the cash for all of the add-ons that 
> Windoze needs to safely connect to the internet or take the time and 
> energy to learn how to safely run a Linux or *BSD box.

Who is going to file the first lawsuit against an owner of a zombied system
for sending spam? It should be interesting legal theater.

{^_^} 




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