Subject: [Asrg] base64 encoded mail

From: [email-masked]
Date: Thu, 19 Jun 2003 18:34:37 -0500

>>> Also, blocking base64 encoding would block email schemes where digital
> > signatures are used.

>> That is entirely mistaken.  You might want to ensure that sender and
>recipient agree on whether to sign the encoded or plaintext versions
>of the message, but that's all.

> In the scheme proposed by Art Pollard, a copy of the public key would be 
included with the signed message. Common format for public key certificates 
use base 64 encoded, outright ban of all base-64 email would be a problem 
for this. The point I was trying to make is that outright ban on ALL 
base-64 email is not a simple as it sounds. There are legit applications 
that use it and such banning approach would have to take them into account.

I wouldn't propose BANNING base64 encoding... not at all.  But I don't think 
there's much if any point in including it in E-mails if the recipient isn't 
ready to accept it.  If a recipient is prepared to accept base64 encoding from 
specific senders (those for which they have a public key, for instance) then 
it's easy enough to turn base64 permission on for those trusted senders.

Gordon Peterson                  http://personal.terabites.com/
1977-2002  Twenty-fifth anniversary year of Local Area Networking!
Support the Anti-SPAM Amendment!  Join at http://www.cauce.org/
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From: Tony Hansen <[email-masked]>
Date: Thu, 19 Jun 2003 22:26:24 -0400

> it's easy enough to turn base64 permission on for those trusted senders.

IMHO, blocking an email message because it's base64 encoded is 
misguided. Here's a case in point: There are gateways out there that 
will switch encodings on messages. If a message is sent through a 
gateway that understands 8-bit messaging, and it is then passed through 
to another system which only allows 7-bit, it's got to be downgraded. 
Downgrading to base64 is perfectly reasonable for such a gateway.

	Tony Hansen
	[email-masked]

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From: Benjamin Geer <[email-masked]>
Date: Fri, 20 Jun 2003 11:37:18 +0100

On Thu, Jun 19, 2003 at 10:26:24PM -0400, Tony Hansen wrote:
> misguided.

In fact, there are mail systems that send *all* text in base64 encoding
(libero.it, a popular Hotmail-like system in Italy, did this the last time I
checked).

Ben

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From: Dave Aronson <[email-masked]>
Date: Fri, 20 Jun 2003 07:50:06 -0400

Tony Hansen <[email-masked]> wrote:

 > gateway that understands 8-bit messaging, and it is then passed
 > through to another system which only allows 7-bit, it's got to be
 > downgraded. Downgrading to base64 is perfectly reasonable for such a
 > gateway.

There are also various standards for sending assorted types of data 
between systems, by email, that dictate that the pieces should be 
base64-encoded.  Most notably I recall doing that with IVM.  (Haven't 
kept up with that since then, tho, so I dunno if they've come up with 
something else, or what....)

-- 
David J. Aronson, Unemployed Software Engineer in the Washington DC area
See http://destined.to/program/ for online resume and other information.