GMAIL (google mail)

[DuncanC]

Ooh, just got my first crop of invites. Took long enough. PM me for one. (Though I bet gmail is about two minutes from going public anyway...)

[terminallyrelaxed]

Yeah I got another 4 yesterday, thats 10 in 2 days so they must be going large..

[Pinball]

Yeah I got 6 invites after I joined (PM me chaps!), viral marketing and all that, using enthusiastic early adopters to do the sales pitch for 'em. Still, nice to be able to send huge attachments ;-)

I'll use it as a secondary email account, though that may change..  As for the security issue, well frankly everything is plugged into Echelon so what difference does it make? Gmail won't be compatible with PGP, and has lots of Echelon people actually working for it, so clearly it's worse than most email operators, but even so..

[TraceyQ]

I've got an invite going. PM me, babies.

[Kingboy_D]

Firstly, I can't be arsed reading the rest of the thread, but can anyone tell me how the hell do you sign up for a gmail account? I can't seem to find a "sign up" link on the gmail homepage. Do I have to be "invited" to get one? Like the Freemasons?

[Jet Set Willy]

Yep but there's millions going around, PM me your e-mail address, or any of the other people uip there with invites spare.

[Pinball]

It also looks like, if you have a gmail account and someone emails you, there's a link at the bottom of the email to "invite them", which basically means unrestricted number of invites possible..

Christ, since when did I become a sales rep for Google? Bloody devious and successful viral marketing campaigns...

[Timmay]

It also looks like, if you have a gmail account and someone emails you, there's a link at the bottom of the email to "invite them", which basically means unrestricted number of invites possible.

They're not hard coded into the email, they're dynamic. So as soon as your invites run out, the message disappears.

[Artemis]

It must be near ready for public release now, I've got another dozen or so invitations, so PM for one if anyone is still in need. It would amuse me in some perverted sense if they cancelled all the 'test accounts' when they release it publically - can you imagine the mad scramble for good email addresses?

[gazzyk1ns]

My mate, doing a PhD in Comp. Sci. , and who got me invited about 3 months ago thinks that they might never release it to the public, i.e. keep it invite only but make sure there are plenty of invites going around.

[Rats]

That would make sense, they could stop inviting when it gets a bit clogged.

[weekender]

I've got 4 invites left, PM me if you want one.

[Rubbish Monkey]

handy sounding gmail thingy...

http://toolbar.google.com/gmail-helper/

The Gmail Notifier is a downloadable Windows application that alerts you when you have new Gmail messages. It displays an icon in your system tray to let you know if you have unread Gmail messages, and shows you their subjects, senders and snippets, all without your having to open a web browser.

[Joy Nktonga]

Gmail finally gave me some invites too. I've three to dish out, so if there's any of you left who haven't yet got one, first three PMs get them.

[untitled_london]

That would make sense, they could stop inviting when it gets a bit clogged.

yeah, but it wouldn't look as good as hotmail giving away free 2Gb accounts as of next month.


</twopennethworth>

[VorpalSword]

yeah, but it wouldn't look as good as hotmail giving away free 2Gb accounts as of next month.

losing, fighting, they're, battle, a. any of these words making sense?

[DuncanC]

That would make sense, they could stop inviting when it gets a bit clogged.

yeah, but it wouldn't look as good as hotmail giving away free 2Gb accounts as of next month.

</twopennethworth>

...except they're not, you have to pay £15 a year for "Hotmail Plus" to get 2GB. Free users will eventually get 250MB, but not at the same time as the Hotmail Plus upgrade, you'll be stuck with 2MB for a bit longer yet...

[Pinball]

I have this tingly worrying feeling when using Gmail, as it's so geared up to monitoring, tracking and databasing everything you say and do via email, but I have to ask - is it any worse than Gawab, Hotmail, Yahoo etc.? All these companies are wired up for sound with Echelon, so what difference does it make? Is there an email service which says it does not collect information about you, does not share information with Echelon (even assuming it could stop them snooping which is doubtful) and will destroy all log files and email records? I can't think of any...

[MojoJojo]

Agghh, Echelon is completely unnessary  for the government to read emails. All you need is a few computers "on" the internet (i.e. actually passing data around for other people), or preferably a few sitting in the LINX exchange in London. The government don't need to "wire up for sound" Yahoo/Hotmail etc...to grab all the emails, and in indeed any emails sent from anywhere that pass through the UK.

So in this respect, there is no difference between gmail and any other service.

The difference is that while MSN, Yahoo etc... claim to not look at any contents of emails (think that might be in the Privacy statement, not sure), Gmail does, so that Adwords can be targeted at you. They also haven't ruled out more invasive uses in the future.

[gazzyk1ns]

EDIT, because for people with small monitors I might have stretched the page...

Well, a computer at Google does:

Google is NOT reading your mail. Privacy is an issue we take very seriously. Gmail is a technology-based program. Advertising and related information are shown using a completely automated process. Ads are selected for relevance and served by Google computers using the same contextual advertising technology that powers our AdSense program. This technology enables Google to effectively target dynamically changing content, such as email, or news stories.

No humans will read the contents of Gmail user messages without explicit permission, or in circumstances other than those outlined in our privacy policy.

We also may collect information about the use of your account, such as how much storage you are using, how often you log in and other information related to your registration and use of Gmail. Information displayed or clicked on in your Gmail account (including UI elements, ads, links, and other information) is also recorded. We use this information internally to deliver the best possible service to you, such as improving the Gmail user interface, preventing fraud within our advertising system, and better targeting related information.

Google will never sell, rent or share your personal information, including your Gmail address or email content, with any third parties for marketing purposes without your express permission.

Let's face it, Gmail is free and they are within their rights to collect that usage info detailed in that penultimate paragraph... if you disagree then you must also logically disagree with Neil knowing how many people have downloaded a certain Morris R1 show, etc...

[MojoJojo]

Which basically says they don't have people reading a few thousand emails a day, they have computers scanning every email (millions?) for keywords.
Pretty much what Echelon does.

Linky:
http://www.theregister.co.uk/2004/06/15/gmail_spook_heaven/

[gazzyk1ns]

I just don't understand why people are scared. I sent an email to a friend the other week suggesting he launch a terrorist attack in Essex, I've not had any police round here. I just don't believe all the hype surrounding all this.

log onto DALnet on Mirc, do a /list, look at what some of the channels are called and how many people it says are in there. If "they" could/wanted to get every potential troublemaker on the internet, then I'm sure they'd take the more obvious route of going in there, doing a /whois, finding out who they are through their ISP and then knocking on their door. Having supercomputers process emails for keywords seems extremely inefficient compared to that.

[DuncanC]

Which basically says they don't have people reading a few thousand emails a day, they have computers scanning every email (millions?) for keywords.
Pretty much what Echelon does.

Or Hotmail's spam filter, which most users turn on and don't think about.

[weekender]

Does anyone want one of these invite things?  I've got 6 to give away; I've only got 2 friends and both of them have GMail accounts already.  PM me your e-mail address and I'll send you one.  If you're a woman, please include a picture.

[terminallyrelaxed]

A picture of what?

I have 6 too if anyone wants one - although its looking like anyone who wants one on here already as one....

[untitled_london]

That would make sense, they could stop inviting when it gets a bit clogged.

yeah, but it wouldn't look as good as hotmail giving away free 2Gb accounts as of next month.

</twopennethworth>

...except they're not, you have to pay £15 a year for "Hotmail Plus" to get 2GB. Free users will eventually get 250MB, but not at the same time as the Hotmail Plus upgrade, you'll be stuck with 2MB for a bit longer yet...

okies - my bad... i saw a news linky and only briefly skimmed it.....i thiught they had retracted the 250MB in favour of the full 2GB...i'll loook for the linky, but dont expect anything soon :P


------------

just don't understand why people are scared. I sent an email to a friend the other week suggesting he launch a terrorist attack in Essex, I've not had any police round here. I just don't believe all the hype surrounding all this.

log onto DALnet on Mirc, do a /list, look at what some of the channels are called and how many people it says are in there. If "they" could/wanted to get every potential troublemaker on the internet, then I'm sure they'd take the more obvious route of going in there, doing a /whois, finding out who they are through their ISP and then knocking on their door. Having supercomputers process emails for keywords seems extremely inefficient compared to that.

hahhahaha

gotta gives props to the IRC boys...

the spooks (blah w/e ever you call them) are heavily invested into the IRC channels..their successes & failures goes unreported....they engage in illegal activity....they work on the entrapment & blackmail baisis ffs. this shit is tooo well established.

you really dont have to delve to deeply to tap into a few who know where there are currenlty working or what they are working on....

typically, they are the lamers or the l33t in the territory, as such - they are largely ignored and miss out on the real coups (such as the hack on the TCP/IP transatlantic spine leading to the widespread realisation that  RSA SSH and MP5 checks are no longer valid as "safe")

this is set to change tho - the increase in security budgets and the downturn in IT paychecks has left the "players" with a liefstyle shortfall...hence they will end up working for .gov sooner rather than later.

[gazzyk1ns]

I just don't buy any of it. I think  the only people who are tapping/spying/hacking/monitoring are 19 year olds who know Linux and C better than they know their native language. I also think that to make up for all the obvious deficiencies in their lives, they'd like you to think that they're able to monitor government agents when really, they're either monitoring a fellow l33ter posing as one, or are simply lying outright.

You'd assume paedophiles would be #1 on the hitlist of any "net cops"... doesn't it tell you something that the biggest and most recent operation (ore) was carried out by the highly undercover and high-tech method of... getting paedophiles to provide them with their credit card details?

[Timmay]

operation (ore) was carried out by the highly undercover and high-tech method of... getting paedophiles to provide them with their credit card details?

I believe by law this is one of the only ways you can actually prove - or be certain of a conviction - short of busting down their doors and catching them tormenting the trouser trout to some spreadeagled underage wasaskingforitanyway girl on their PC.

By providing payment (through a credit card) you are proving intent. No way outta that one. Which is nice. For the police.

[untitled_london]

paedos are sooooooo not on the agenda.

think about it, the guys who hacked the TCP/IP spine posted that they did so, had they released it to the wild instead who knows, but that was tby far and away one of the best hacks ever, seriously high level shit. (where were the govts???)roghly speaking, the implication (threat was) "they" could drop all IT communcation between the UK & the US (bar satelite).

that is the sate of "proper" cyber-terrorism today. kiddy fiddlers - meh - your joking - weigh out 10 serious kiddy fiddlers vs. "all" transatlanitc business exchange (yup - that would be all three stock markets UK/ US & any HK related traffic too) and tel me agian that you think the UK govt is looking for the paedos.

forget linux & c, and forget the 19 year olds, thats shit , honestly its not an issues, but they will force feed that shit by way of diverting attention from the truth, they are currently waaaaay behind the game.

sorry to crap on ur points, but, this shit is severe in its consequences.

and yeah - i'm sure you read that the UK govt has recently advertised/ granted a budget for cryptologists...you think they want 60 of the finest UK born and bred crypto's to work for them just for shits and giggles... i think not!

WASTE pal...s'where its at - and its the way it going....

...

[edited]

[Pinball]

This thread is excellent.

As you were.