Gmail Lets Candidates Spam You — FEC FAIL
Politicians convinced the Federal Election Commission (FEC) that Google must give them a free pass through Gmail’s spam filters. They want la GOOG to ignore user preferences and deliver their “delightful” fundraising missives direct to your inbox. Because democracy.
But the real reason their email gets filtered as spam is because the contractors sending it are behaving like spammers, we’re told. Their email servers aren’t correctly authenticated, they’re sending far too often and their content looks just like spam. So rather than admit their mistakes, they took the easy way out: Blame Google.
Oh, what a tangled web we weave. In today’s SB Blogwatch, we order the lobster Thermidor au crevette with a Mornay sauce, served in a Provencale manner, with shallots and aubergines, garnished with truffle pâté, brandy, with a fried egg on top and spam.
Your humble blogwatcher curated these bloggy bits for your entertainment. Not to mention: Gimme Gimme Shelter Shelter.
Email is a Mass Noun
What’s the craic? Isaac Stanley-Becker reports—“Google gets green light to exempt campaign email”:
“Google was being scapegoated by Republican consultants”
The Federal Election Commission on Thursday advised Google that a proposed pilot program allowing political campaigns to evade automated spam detection would not violate federal campaign finance law. … Bipartisan approval from the regulator clears the way for Google to implement the program, which would disable Gmail’s ordinary spam filters for participating candidates and political committees, leaving individual users to mark unwanted email manually.
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The six-member body … is split evenly by party. … With one abstention … one Democrat joined the three Republicans in endorsing the plan. [She] said she did so reluctantly. “I don’t want to, and it is for the same reasons that all the commenters don’t want to,” said Dara Lindenbaum, vice chair of the FEC, who was sworn in this month. “But I think the law and the commission’s regulations and commission’s precedents permit this. I also don’t want to hamstring innovation and pilot programs.”
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The company sought FEC approval for the program following a pressure campaign waged by Republicans, who accused Google of unfairly filtering its email. … People familiar with company discussions, who spoke on the condition of anonymity … said Google was being scapegoated by Republican consultants seeking to shift the blame for poor fundraising caused by lists that have grown stale and recipients who have tired of incessant appeals.
Ouch. Makena Kelly makes—“Good news for Republicans facing falling fundraising”:
“Abusive fundraising tactics”
Google’s plan … would allow for candidates, political party committees, and leadership political action committees to apply for the program, which would make their messages exempt from Gmail’s spam detection systems. … The FEC confirmed that Google’s plan was legal. … Google will soon allow for campaigns … to apply for the program and ensure that their email—despite using spam-like methods and language—won’t be filtered out of a user’s inbox.
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Republicans … are struggling to meet their online fundraising goals this cycle. … The total amount donated to GOP entities and federal campaigns fell by more than 12 percent in the second quarter when compared to the first quarter. The drop is highly unusual, especially as small-dollar donations traditionally increase as elections approach.
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The … DNC argued that Google’s proposal would be a boon for Republicans and open Gmail up to “abusive fundraising tactics.” “It’s sad that instead of simply stopping sending spam email, Republicans engaged in a bad-faith pressure campaign — and it’s even more unfortunate that Google bought it,” [said] Daniel Wessel, DNC deputy communications director.
Well they would say that, right? Thomas Claburn shines a “green light to flood US Gmail inboxes”:
“Every single message opposes Google’s proposal”
Republicans seized upon an academic study … to support their claims that Gmail is biased against them. The authors of the study, however, have insisted their study doesn’t say that, and may prove the opposite. Google has challenged the study for supposed methodological flaws and a limited sample size. Nonetheless, Republicans have managed to get Google to respond to their demands.
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Among the [129] comments sent to the FEC … every single message opposes Google’s proposal. … 15,000 people signed a petition at … Civic Shout, a petitioning service focused on progressive causes … urging the FEC to reject Google’s proposal.
What’s behind this? Mike Masnick unpicks it—“Marco Rubio Got Furious At Google”:
“Hadn’t configured his email properly”
The problem is not the spam filters. The problem is the “digital campaign” companies and their terrible practices.
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Donations to Republicans have been dropping. … There are lots of reasons it could be, but [they] have decided that it must be because Google is sending their email to spam. … And, yes, it’s … “spam”. … Republicans in recent years have really embraced extremely spammy techniques that appear to be much more focused on separating gullible rubes from their money, including tricking them into unwittingly making recurring donations. [They] have an astounding sense of entitlement, combined with an incredible ignorance of how basic technology works.
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Marco Rubio apparently was absolutely furious with Google, until someone realized whoever he was paying to handle his email hadn’t configured his email properly, and that was the problem. … It sounds like Rubio’s spamming operation didn’t set up … DKIM/DMARC authentication. … I know this is plaguing lots of folks. Hell, it’s something we’ve had to deal with … after we realized that Google was sending a lot of our email to spam.
Dyed-in-the-wool Republican Erick-Woods Erickson has a message for the consultants—“Stop Blaming Others For the Problems You Created”:
“Can’t accept responsibility and wants to blame others”
The consultant class of the GOP is pushing the mythology that Google and Apple are flagging their email because tech companies hate Republicans. … What’s going on here is one or more GOP consultant organizations engaged in a spam operation, which naturally trips the switches at companies monitoring email.
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[This isn’t] Google abusing Republican email. This is … Republican consultants abusing email they have access to and Google (and Apple) protecting their users from spam. Unfortunately, the Republican consultants have the ears of their leaders and … they are selling Republican elected officials on the idea that Google is nefariously blocking their email. The reality is the consultants will not fess up to their abuses.
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Email and SMS spam are driving away small dollar Republican donors. The candidates are now reaping what their consultants have been sowing. … If I name them, they’ll get super defensive, start emailing and calling and texting and I’ll spend my whole day dealing with a consultant class that can’t accept responsibility and wants to blame others.
A plague on both their houses. Heed the man with No_name_:
My telephone rings … with junk calls even though I am on the do not call list. During election season it triples. Flimflam charities and politicians do not have to pay attention to the do not call list. Now they are saying I have to get additional junk mail in my inbox as well? It is time for politicians to stop exempting themselves from rules they make for everyone else.
This sounds like terrible news for Gmail users. sdoering crafts the Dear John:
Okay Google, we need to talk. … I am done with you. Thanks for providing me with the last straw I needed to cut ties.
Who needs Google Workspace when Google (ab)uses us users as leverage for gaining influence in the political arena? I expect a spam filter I am paying for to not create holes in it for the highest bidder or gaining political klout.
I do hope Gmail users remain in control of this. 93 Escort Wagon drives the point home:
The important … unanswered questions: Can I, in Gmail, still set up a … filter and move all such email into my Junk folder? And, if I consistently flag such email as spam as they come in, will Gmail learn that I don’t want them and start filtering them?
Or — as I fear — does this amount to a “get out of jail free” card for all political spammers?
How might that work? ktmglen suggestifies thuswise:
Fine—as long as every single political email is required to have a clearly identifiable header identifying it as a political email. I can then set up a rule on that header to move the email directly to deleted items and bypass the spam folder altogether.
Meanwhile, somehow this is gonna be good for Google. Mark mark l 2’s words:
Google will no doubt use it to fling more ads at you anyway since they know which email you read, delete without opening, or mark as spam. That’s more juicy data to sell you more relevant ads.
And Finally:
You have been reading SB Blogwatch by Richi Jennings. Richi curates the best bloggy bits, finest forums, and weirdest websites … so you don’t have to. Hate mail may be directed to @RiCHi or [email protected]. Ask your doctor before reading. Your mileage may vary. E&OE. 30.
Image sauce: Hannes Johnson (via Unsplash; leveled and cropped) — but Hormel Foods Corporation (NYSE:HRL) would like to remind you that “SPAM” is its registered trademark. It would also deeply love to turn the clock back 40 years—to a time before Python-loving USENET denizens used the word to mean … well, spam.
