I wonder if Miss Manners has an entry on this
I just got a short email from a reader of the UN-Internet-takeover article. I tapped out a reply, only to get this message back:
I apologize for this automatic reply to your email. To control spam, I now allow incoming messages only from senders I have approved beforehand. If you would like to be added to my list of approved senders, please fill out the short request form (see link below). Once I approve you, I will receive your original message in my inbox. You do not need to resend your message. I apologize for this one-time inconvenience. Click the link below to fill out the request: https://webmail.pas.earthlink.net/wam/addme?a=(rest snipped)
If someone sends me email expecting a reply, they ought to add my address to that “approved” list. Any non-brain-dead email software would do that automatically. It looks like the writer used a feature provided by the mega-ISP Earthlink, a company that really should know better. (As an aside to my correspondent, my apologies if your ISP forced this on you.)
I don’t plan to click – it just encourages this sort of thing.