Xref: utzoo news.admin:1352 news.sysadmin:458
Path: utzoo!mnetor!uunet!mcvax!ukc!stl!dww
From: dww@stl.stc.co.uk (David Wright)
Newsgroups: news.admin,news.sysadmin
Subject: Re: Net userid forgery
Message-ID: <597@acer.stl.stc.co.uk>
Date: 13 Dec 87 13:37:50 GMT
References: <1574@bsu-cs.UUCP> <7535@elsie.UUCP> <8030@ism780c.UUCP> <424@minya.UUCP>
Reply-To: dww@stl.UUCP (David Wright)
Organization: STL,Harlow,UK.
Lines: 26

In article <424@minya.UUCP> jc@minya.UUCP (John Chambers) writes:
#Most people in the business world consider it totally normal for a secretary 
#to heavily edit a boss's mailings, ...  
#putting the boss's name on the whole thing.

But before posting, either the boss reads, agrees and signs it, or if the
secretary sends it out without the boss seeing it first the secretary will
sign it 'pp' ("per pro", on behalf of)  the nominal originator.    
So there should be no confusion as to who actually posted the letter,
and no question of "forgery".

Usenet is used for different purposes to the standard business letter,
but a near equivalent practice would be TWO headings, one showing the
account the msg is posted from (unalterable except with root priv's),
the other an optional one that the poster could add - the meaning being

"posted from account  by or for "

This would not stop all forged headings - lots of posters have root priv's and
can re-write any program that they don't like - but it would be a standard
and sensible way for most people to use if posting for someone else or from
someone else's account.
-- 
Regards,
        David Wright           STL, London Road, Harlow, Essex  CM17 9NA, UK
dww@stl.stc.co.uk  ...uunet!mcvax!ukc!stl!dww  PSI%234237100122::DWW