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Email footer instructions

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Oct 22, 2001
431
US
All,
I see all email coming to my company that fails to find a specific mailbox, which happens when people typo legitimate addresses, and also when they use the wrong domain name (since we have a relatively simple domain name that matches our and several other company names). Many emails (roughly a half-dozen per day) that I see because of incorrect domain name addresses have footers on them instructing "if you're not the addressee, remove this email from your system immediately and contact the sender" or similar to that.
My question is, are these instructions enforceable in the US? I'm not about to go broadcasting these emails to their competitors, but since they don't generally use a signature line it would take me a few minutes per email to figure out who sent it, and to go in and REALLY delete it from my system would take a minute or so each as well.
I understand that the sending company probably really doesn't care all that much (and wouldn't even find out unless I told them), but I'm somewhat annoyed that an email accidentally sent to me would require action on my part, particularly when it would take MORE action on my part because the sender doesn't include a sig line.
-Steve
 
You are asking if this is enforceable? There have been no cases of which I am aware that would indicate such liability (although I have been alarmed at the outcome of a few law suits regarding encryption and privacy).

I feel ok to admit that the reason I use a computer is because I am lazy. I like the instantaneous solutions they provide and get a kick out of implementing them. I would make the supposition that other admins are the same way and would likewise agree with you on this:

If you so uncertain you are sending an email to the correct address, VERIFY IT! And don't complain if I don't clean up your mess in the end.

I could say a lot about spam, but that is a different thread altogether.

Cheers!
 
If its that important the should not leave it open to the world and every missed sent email address they can I think this goes along the same lines as someone leaveing a unmarked package at your door if you want you can keep it or find who it goes or just toss it its up to you gunthnp
Have you ever woken up and realized you where not alive.
 
Hmmmm, I'd hate to live next door to you, gunthnp....I have received enough packages for and from my neighbors to feel secure in knowing that if I'm not there, any packages will still get to me. Personally, I think this is a good thing.

On the topic: I don't go out walking my dogs with the intention of letting them run off. I have reasonable control over this, and if I can help it in any way it's not gonna happen. But, this doesn't mean that I shouldn't tag my dogs and possibly include a little note asking whoever finds my dog to return him to me. After all, unlike some of you it seems, I do screw up sometimes. It's typically not because I am lazy, or don't care, or feel others should take on responsibility for my actions. Usually I just mess up unintentionally.

IMHO it is nothing more than a courtesy to help out others when they mess up, just as I appreciate the help of those that watch me fumble. I don't expect it, but I'm certainly appreciative when it happens.

So besides the simple legalistic reasons behind adding whatever kind of disclaimer companies/people like to add to their emails, I don't think it's any different from putting a reply-address on an envelope. I don't make a habit out of throwing out snail-mail wrongfully delivered to my house, and I would hope neither would any of you. I simply put it back in the mailbox with whatever corrections I think should be made. And really, it doesn't take me that much time to hit "reply" whenever I do get an email inadvertently. As to deleting the email, hitting DEL takes me even less clicks. I doubt any administrator or legal department honestly expects you to go into your systems and ‘REALLY’ delete the message.

Of course, the point made about not being able to enforce any of this is completely accurate. Again, I don't think that's why it is there. You just want to make sure that whoever receives the information when they shouldn't have, is legally advised not to use it, which is simply a liability issue.

If you choose not to do anything with the information provided in a disclaimer, no one will know and you won’t live a day less for it. Just realize that you, too, might benefit from it should you ever suffer from a typo or brainfart. X-)

And to be annoyed or feel like someone is adversely affecting your life by adding a simple disclaimer, I feel is taking things a bit too personal.

Of course, that’s just my opinion, I could be wrong.

Martijn Middelplaats
martijn@middelplaats.net
 
Martijn,
I think you missed something in my original question, which is that the vast majority of the misaddressed emails do NOT have a return address posted on them (a.k.a. a signature line with the email address in them), and since they're not directly addressed to me, there's no usable Reply button. Thus, it's not as easy as hitting delete, it takes a couple minutes at least to drill through SMTP logs to find the sender address. To use your dog analogy, it's like putting a tag on asking a finder to return the dog, but only putting your name on the tag, not your address or phone number.
I suppose my annoyance is that they'll add a disclaimer which (in wording, at least) requires action on my part when they can't even get their own people to add sig lines.
I have occasionally notified senders (repeat senders, generally) of the domain they're probably trying to get to, and come to think of it I've put in an automatic forward for a xxxx.au company's dozen most common email addresses, so don't think I'm not as courteous as the next person. I was just asking a question about the ethics of ignoring the disclaimers.
-Steve
 
Steve,

You're right. I missed that point, or at least didn't percieve it to be the center of your argument. I apologize for jumping the gun.

I'm not quite sure however how emails not sent directly to you don't have a 'usable Reply button'? Apart from spam (and as pointed out by soy4soy, that's an entirely different thread), I rarely ever receive emails where the sender's address has been masked or is bogus altogether. What situation are you referring to?

Anyhow, I guess I can see how it might be annoying to have to deal with stuff like this in the way you describe. My suggestion would be to not put that much effort into it. Because you're right: if I only put my name on the dog-tag, there's not that much people can do for me, other than take my dog to the SPCA.

BTW, there is such a thing as but as far as I can tell it is not set up to collect lost or abandoned email (-: Martijn Middelplaats
martijn@middelplaats.net
 
Martijn,
#1 - nice sig ;-)
#2 - The reason I'm seeing these emails at all is because I've set my mail server to notify me of all emails coming into my domain name that can't be resolved to a user. Someone thinking fred@domain.co.uk sends it to fred@domain.com, and I see it as a non-deliverable notification. I've set it up that way because many people in my company have difficult names to type properly, so I forward the "close enoughs" to their intended recipient within my company. I can read or forward that email, but it shows up as being from "administrator@domain.com". The original sender should be getting a "undeliverable" response from my server, but you'd be amazed (or maybe you wouldn't) at how many people try sending over and over and over again to the same address.
-Steve
 
Steve,

#1 Thanks
#2 I think I'm catching on (give me a day or two and I'll really have a clue what I'm writing about):

If the premis is that the disclaimer, specifically the request therein to rectify or correct or respond or whatever in the case of a miss-fire, becomes all the more significant when the recipient is not the intended recipient, it is of obvious importance to first make sure that a signature is present. Duh.

Gotcha :)I
Martijn Middelplaats
martijn@middelplaats.net
 
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