[sf-lug] LinkedIn spam

[Rick Moen]

Quoting Philip Pope (pmpope at gmail.com):

> LinkedIn
> ------------
> 
> 
> 
> I'd like to add you to my professional network on LinkedIn.

I've put in yet another filter to attempt to autoreject this sort of
hapless bullshit.


The way this happens is:  Someone like Philip Pope signs up for an
account with LinkedIn and furnishes his/her GMail or similar credentials
_to_ LinkedIn, is asked something like 'Would you like us to connect you
with your contacts?', and unwarily hits to 'OK' box.

What then happens is that the LinkedIn software datamines the user's
GMail (or similar) account for all known e-mail addresses
indiscriminately, and sends them ALL canned 'invitation' notices forged
to claim to be from the user.  The user often assumes that he/she will
be 'connected' only to other LinkedIn users -- but, no, LinkedIn is
using the opportunity to mass-mail as many addresses as possible in
order to carpet the planet with marketing.  It's like if Herbalife
had branched out and became a spamhaus.

You'd think after nine years of this, people would learn better, but
there's always someone new to fall for the ploy -- and mailing lists are
among the collateral damange just about every time it does.

The default come-on used to be 'Subject:  [name] wants to stay in touch
on LinkedIn', but I'm guessing that's been so widely filtered by now
that they changed it to 'Subject: Invitation to connect on LinkedIn'
just to evade antispam controls.


-- Rick M.
(wearing his site-operator hat)