[Nfb-web] *Important Alert* Be Aware of and Check Archiving and Other Privacy Options In Mailman Mailing Lists

[Mika Pyyhkala]

Greetings,

There are some settings and options in the widely used Mailman mailing
list program which you should be aware of, and verify that your lists
are appropriately configured.

Archiving Options
When a Mailman mailing list is set up out-of-the-box, the Archiving
Options are set such that the list traffic is searchable.  In other
words, the default setup is not private, and data can be searched via
search engines that is posted on these mailing lists.  This could be
an issue if you internally use Mailman mailing lists in your affiliate
or group for confidential discussions, or for items that are not yet
ready for public release.  It is simple to turn the search feature
off, but again, this is not the out of box default configuration when
you create a list, and the system does not readily prompt you that
this should be checked.

Other Options: There are other privacy options which you may want to
check that have to do with, for example, where list members can see
other subscribers.

I would also be curious if any of you recommend alternatives to the
Mailman mailing list solution.  While it has a lot of features, it is
somewhat cumbersome to use, and again I don't think its out-of-box
configuration is the best.  It also sends out the monthly reminders
which you may not need, especially if you have an announce only list.
I realize you may be able to turn these auto generated messages off,
but I have to think there is a better mailing list solution especially
for announcement based or internal use lists (as opposed to forum type
discussion lists) which Mailman originally was likely designed for.

Thanks,
Mika Pyyhkala