What I do for a living...
sometimes, can be very complicated, but I'll explain it anyway because it's changed my perspective on the internet and where we're going as a species.

The term 'Abuse' refers to the misuse of the internet service, which is broken down into a few different categories:

• SPAM - This refers to all junk email whether it's mail sent from a hacked box, or intentionally sent by old fashioned email advertisers. Virus related SPAM also fits under this category, and is pretty much what I deal with on a regular basis.
• Copyright Infringement - The Digital Millennium Copyright Act was the beginning of a gigantic boner for Lawyers everywhere. This act pretty much created a whole new chapter in our legal system and if you listen closely, you can hear the wheels of the Judgicial system creaking a bit slower. As a summary, anyone that makes any music/media they don't own by law must be notified to cease and desist.
• Hacking/Illegal Entry - This is the age of information after all...and it's becoming more valuable than gold. People that collect data are the worst kind of scum in the world. I hear they eat babies.
• Miscellaneous - There are a number of things that fall under this category. I rarely ever have to deal with this category, and when I do, I have to consult the devil (our Legal team).

Think of me as the Law enforcement at my job. I don't exactly enforce 'law', but I do happen to swing around a list of rules also known as an 'Acceptable Use Policy'. This 'AUP', for short (we fucking love Acronyms), is the legal agreement we make with our customers whenever they sign up for our service. The parameters of said legal agreement are pretty simple: Don't piss anyone off and we wont have to disconnect your Internet Service. Given my former problem with authority figures, I have now become what I used to despise...kind of ironic in a way.

My job entails reviewing any complaints we've had about one of our customers and then making them aware of the activity. Sounds pretty simple, doesn't it? It can be, but only if they have competency in basic security. Otherwise, I spend some of my time educating the 'lesser informed' ones on what's expected of them as one of our customers. On a rare occasion, I get some self-righteous egotistical asshat that tells me how many neat pieces of paper he has on his wall (elaborating on why he should be considered an 'Expert') when I ask him who the Administrator of their Network might be. Fortunately, since I'm the authority figure, I only need to wave the 'disconnect' button in front of their big fat heads to get them to comply.

Although 'Abuse' is my primary function, I have a number of other things I'm responsible for doing in addition to that. I also have to roll up my sleeves and put on my happy Customer Service face, but that certainly happens much less nowadays.

I had a point to this post, but unfortunately, my 'slacking time' at work has now expired, so I'll continue this later when I can bore you with details. More to come!