184948 - RFE: Do not load remote images [plus javascript, css, and other resources] if mail is spam

Status: VERIFIED DUPLICATE of bug 179568

(SeaMonkey :: MailNews: Message Display, enhancement)

Description

[Adam Masri]

Platform: iBook G3/700/640MB/30GB, MacOS X 10.2.2
Fizzilla build: 2002112907

A lot of spam uses images on external servers; when the email is loaded, the
subsequent loading of a foreign image proves that the email address is valid, in
which case we just get more spam.

I would like to see an option added to Mozilla preferences: Privacy & Security:
Images. Right now, we have the option to suppress images when loaded from a
foreign server. I'd like to see an additional option: suppress a foreign image
when the built-in spam filtering says a particular email is spam. This does a
couple things:

1) Since the image doesn't load, the spammer isn't certain the email address is
valid.

2) I often want to receive foreign images, since some HTML formatted email uses
these foreign images in legitimate email I wish to receive. However, porno spam
popping up, even for a second, can be rather embarrassing when in a family or
business setting. It the spam filters have already identified the email as spam,
why bother loading the images?

3) Saves on bandwidth for dialup users.

4) Decreases the chance that a child or uneducated business user will click on
spam, which increases volume of spam for everybody.

- Adam

Comment 1

[André Dahlqvist]

> It the spam filters have already identified the email as spam,
> why bother loading the images?

Why even bother with a pref at all - it seams like nobody who has enabled spam
filtering would want these images to be loaded in spam. "Overpreffing" stuff
isn't good.

Comment 2

[Russell Odom]

Agree with comment 1 - no need fo a pref. Looking at
http://www.mozilla.org/mailnews/specs/spam/ (section E) it looks like this is
planned already.

I think this bug should be extended so *no* external resources (images, JS, CSS,
flash, etc.) are loaded - since any communication with a spammer's server is
potentially a channel through which they can tell you've read their e-mail.

Also, no JS or plugins should be executed if the mail is spam (regardless of the
settings in the preferences) - is this/should this be a separate bug?

One more thought - what about e-mails that have their images (or other
resources) embedded in the message content, rather than loaded from an external
server? Points 2 and 4 from the original report apply equally to these, so they
shouldn't be displayed either.

Comment 3

[(not reading, please use [e-mail] instead)]

note, there is a privacy bug about adding a pref to not allow remote content to
load in mail messages, which is related to this.

Comment 4

[Peter Lairo]

bug 184948 a dupe of this bug? (this bug was reported first)

Comment 5

[Peter Lairo]

My previous post was a cut&paste error - DAMN!

Dupe of bug 179568? (that bug was reported first)

Comment 6

[Jon Granrose]

this seems like a dup of 179568 to me also.

Comment 7

[Quinn Yost (mythdraug)]

Agreed and done.

*** This bug has been marked as a duplicate of 179568 ***

Comment 8

[sairuh (rarely reading bugmail)]

v dup