10/19/97 - 1127

COM Email Blocking Controversy

USA (VNN) - Some email users have recently experienced problems sending email messages to users of the ISKCON COM email system . When sending an email message over the Internet to a COM user they get a message in return stating: "user does not want any messages from you."

It is understandable that some members of an email system do not want to receive certain kind of mail. They are certainly entitled to that. The question here is: Do members of COM know whether their email is being blocked, censored or cut off from the outside world.

The following thread from COM users may shed some light on this:
(quote)
"I'm talking about private email. For example, you have not authorized anyone to block your incoming mail, and I have not authorized anyone to block my outgoing mail. So, I'll add your @com.bbt.se email address, as well as my own, to the list of receivers of this message. Let's see whether or not either of us gets this as a personal message." and "I haven't gotten this message so far, have you? I did, however get the following message, which says that "<(removed)@com.bbt.se> does not want any messages from you" and that "<(removed)@com.bbt.se> does not want any messages from you". Isn't this interesting! According to this, I don't want any messages from myself!
But (removed) Prabhu, there are over 1700 devotees with @com.bbt.se email addresses. Most of them have no other email address. If I send a message to any of them (even from my Hotmail or Rocketmail accounts), it gets blocked.
No warning, no reason or no "length of sentence" has ever been given. Therefore, my contention is that this blocking of private email messages without permission from either the sender, or the receiver, is unvaisnava, immoral, unjust and possibly even illegal."
(end quote)

Another email was received by VNN:
(quote)
COM is not a public e-mail service. If someone wants to receive mail without having some messages blocked, he should approach and use a public e-mail provider. That is not the function or obligation of COM.
ys Vipramukhya Swami
(end quote)

Another email was posted:
(quote)
Of course, I can?t get through to (removed) dasa because a ?kill file? has been installed on ISKCON?s Internet COM site, which prevents our email from traveling through to anyone. However, he has been made aware of this, and our alternate system for communication works, regardless.
(end quote)

The question rises wehther this an attempt by ISKCON administration officials to control the flow of information that gets to ISKCON members or have COM users requested that feature to be enabled on their email account?

An interesting thing happened when VNN sent some test emails to email addresses posted on several official ISKCON sites for "ISKCON Communications" and the "Minister of Communication". The reply was: "<(removed)@com.bbt.se> does not want any messages from you."

One editors had an idea for an alternative communication method - smoke signals.