Re: [Evolution] Re: FRQ: Pipe incoming mail through AntiVirus tools

[Jeffrey Stedfast <fejj ximian com>]

On Fri, 2002-07-12 at 07:15, Marcus Franke wrote:
> Am Fre, 2002-07-12 um 12.15 schrieb Anton J Aylward, CISSP:
> > On Fri, 2002-07-12 at 00:34, Jeffrey Stedfast wrote:
> > >
>
> > > Along the same lines, solving problems that are already solved is also a
> > > waste of time (if you want a virus scanner for your email, this is best
> > > done on the SERVER not the CLIENT).
> >
> > Damn Right!
> > And in a corporate setting the likelihood of a mail gateway or central
> > server is much greater.
>
> What about the home user then? Im pretty sure that some of my
> friends use Linux on their desktops, but I doubt that more than
> one or two beside me use fetchmail to get their mails..

Having client-side IMAP virus-scan filters in Evolution won't help you
here either.

Please... just think 2 minutes. Just *2 minutes* about the virus problem
and you will conclude that the BEST and ONLY place to have this type of
filtering is server-side. As soon as it is client-side, it's too late.
If the virus can affect the client software, then you've just been
infected. Game over.

> Windows users are used to mail clients that fetch the mails 
> directly from the server.. You won't get them all to configure
> fetchmail and procmail an avmailgate..

You won't be able to get these people to virus scan either. Again,
another + for server-side filtering.

> And the possibility to hook some antivirus application into evolution
> to scan for viruses in the mailbox will give place for companies to
> sell such solutions to the end-users that switch from one desktop to
> "our" desktop..

Yes, because after all this solves all the problems of viruses. This
does nothing but open a market for companies that would otherwise not
exist. How does this solve the problem of viruses? It doesn't. It has a
better chance of solving unemployment than it does anti-viruses (and it
won't solve unemployment either).

Jeff

-- 
Jeffrey Stedfast
Evolution Hacker - Ximian, Inc.
fejj ximian com  - www.ximian.com