Amazon Web Services has been informing that there has been multiple instances of security breaches launched from flex.com to other systems.
As such, all CGI access has been turned off. If you are running a legit CGI program, please open a trouble ticket.
Also some of my mis-configuring SHORELINE Firewall ruleset resulted in CREDIT CARD Payments not going thru.
Fixed.
I made a change to Flex's Filtering via shorewall and accidentally knocked off all secure access to https://www.flex.com and all other sites we handle.
Fixed.
I used to run the email servers for flex.com such that every "@flex.com" email address was handled internally by our very own mail servers. But a big problem happened...
Here is an excerpt from July 7, 2007:
The Problem:
YAHOO, AOL and other mail server systems are blocking all FLEX.COM emails.
The reason:
Spammers are slamming Flex.com users. Some of these flex users have .forward files that in effect redirects these spams to places like Yahoo. So Yahoo et al bans FLEX.COM
Also, a few spammers have signed up for flexnet accounts. Recently a user "guitar" used our flexnet mail servers to send out tons of spam. He/she has since been wiped out of our systems, but this leaves open the problem of how can flexnet monitor outgoing emails?
Thousands of emails each day leave flexnet.
The solution:
Flexnet has moved all flex users over to our GMAIL partnership email system. By sending out email from FlexGmail (my name for this Flex-Gmail relationship), your Yahoo emails will be accepted.
So since July 2007, all domain mail "@flex.com" has been handled by Google/Gmail. In fact, we were part of the beta rollout for what is now termed "business app" by Google.
Incidentally, Google is now charging $5 per user per month for any domain that NOW wants to use their services.
However, flex.com is grandfathered gratis. WE PAY NOT A CENT TO GOOGLE.
Google has in the past and just now has SUSPENDED certain email accounts "@flex.com". Google does not do this lightly but will pro-actively suspend email accounts for serious reasons (flagged accounts).
The important thing to remember is I Del Wong will not jeopardize our grandfathered relationship with GMAIL. What Google decides is pretty much gospel. Otherwise Google could easily kick flex.com out from its treasured grandfathered status.
WE WILL NOT PERMIT ANY EMAIL ACCOUNT SHENANIGANS. I rather risk losing the future business of a flex.com account than risk our relationship with Google.
All suspended email accounts are advised to seek a MOTION TO COMPEL from a court of law. This will provide us with a paper trail that we can then use to plead any case with Gmail/Google should they move to revoke our treasured grandfathered status.
After we receive your court order, we will then and only then re-enable any email account that Gmail/Google has suspended with the understanding that any data storage present in such account will be backup elsewhere as we will then DELETE SUCH OFFENDING EMAIL ACCOUNT IMMEDIATELY after backup.
Mailing Address:
FlexNet Inc
P.O.Box 22481
Honolulu, HI 96823-2481
Know that flex.com had no part whatsoever in the suspension of your email account. GOOGLE SUSPENDED YOUR ACCOUNT, NOT FLEX. Do you understand this?
Also demanding immediate responses to any email correspondence is certainly not a good idea! We usually respond within a few days to requests. And if you are a non-paying entity, then come on, what exactly gives you the right to demand any type of expediency?
For the specific suspended email account in question, we responded within ONE BUSINESS DAY yet you complain we were too slow!
Industrial Age Thinking (pre-1980's)
1. Get a college degree
2. Find a job with good retirement. A government career is best in terms of security and retirement benefits.
3. Read manuals and find written instructions for anything unfamiliar. You don't want to make mistakes.
4. Warranties and name brands all important. Made in USA the goal.
Information Age Thinking (1980 - 2010ish)
1. Go to college but expect to change your major several times.
2. The JOB you get most likely won't be in your major. Make your own retirement via 401Ks.
3. Learn by Playing. All new electronic devices are quickly mastered by playing. Who reads manuals anymore? Making mistakes is how you learn; the more mistakes, the faster the rate of learning.
4. Forget warranties as you will quickly give up older devices for the New. Most products made outside USA.
Entrepreneurial Thinking (2010 - Current)
1. Forego college and attendant +$100K Student Debt (now collectively over one Trillion Dollars). Teach yourself off the internet either selectively or thru Lydia, Skillshare, Udemy etc.
2. Create your own Job for yourself and for others. Everyone's a consultant/independent contractor. Create your own retirement that's recession and inflation proof.
3. Create services and products people wonder how they ever did without.
4. Get a percentage of products made both in the USA and from without.
The rate of Job creation is currently unable to keep up with the population increases. There are not enough Jobs to go around and the competition will only increase in the future.
July 17, 1994 was the date that Flex Net, operating out of a State of Hawaii incubator called "Kaitech" went online and offering dialup modem access to Oahu users, became the very first Hawaii ISP (before Lava Net, before Pixinet even.)
Do you know flex.com existed and was reachable online before amazon and eBay? Yes it's true.
Knowing now and taking it back to 1994:
1. Save all your money and wait for BITCOIN to be invented. Purchase as much as you can at any price under $1. Sell at $1000 each and don't trust MTGOX. I thought about this whole thing somewhat and realize I would have sold out my bitcoins as soon as it went double in value. But what if I had a website called www.onemillionbitcoins.com where I would pick up a bitcoin for 13 cents (or less) apiece? And I wouldn't sell any till I got a million of them....
2. Turn your BBS passion into the first social media website ever.
3. You got married to someone you found on the internet via your BBS. And you knew a few other couples whom met and married likewise. Start up match.com for gosh sakes...
Haha. Oh well.
Running FlexNet over the past 21 years has been a totally unexpected and surprising ride. I thank you all for that.
