On Fri, Jul 07, 2000 at 07:35:52AM +0200, Hank Nussbacher wrote:
There is an inherent problem here. Newer Internet phone systems allow anonymous dialin. We have such a system in Israel (2+ years) and I know one like that exists in the UK. The monopoly phone company sets up a special number like "135", users dialin - no authentication, no user/pswd, just PPP to one specific site. The user fires up their browser and connects to the phone company Web portal which has a large table of ISPs and rates. The user clicks on the one they want and all the packets now flow via that ISP. No authentication. Pure anonymous PPP. [Technical side has been over-simplified.] The phone company bills the user on their phone bill and splits the revenues then with the ISP. The ISP no longer needs modems, or any authentication system, just a large leased line to the phone company virtual POPs and a bank account to receive the monthly checks.
There is a problem here, but it's not *MY* problem. If that becomes a source of too many attack on my systems, I'll block it. If that means disenfranchising Israel, well: 1) You made your bed, now you can lie in it. 2) You've survived disenfranchisement by far more powerful people than me. :-)