Who is abs.apple.com?

Question

Level 2

190 points

Who is abs.apple.com?

I got a "Dear Apple Customer" email requesting that I click a link supposedly going to "http://abs.apple.com/ssurvey/nsurvey.html?id=........" The email addresses a repair that I had done at an authorized Repair Provider and correctly identifies the companies name and the Mac that was repaired. However, I never click email links until I know where they actually take me and especially dislike ones that don't show anything useful as plain text. Mail offered only looking at the Long Headers or the Raw Source. The Raw Source was what appeared when a message has an image imbedded in it:

"RGVhciBBcHBsZSBDdXN0b21lcjoNCg0KQXBwbGUgd291bGQgbGlrZSB0b

yBnZXQgeW91ciBmZWVkYmFjayByZWdhcmRpbmcgeW91ciByZWNlbnQgY

2FycnktaW4gcmVwYWlyIGZvciB5b3VyIE1BQyBNSU5JIGF0IE1BQ0FEVkF

OVEFHRS4NCg0KVGhlIHJlc3BvbnNlcyB5b3UgcHJvdmlkZSBpbiB0aGlzIHN

1cnZleSB3aWxsIGJlIHVzZWQgdG8gaW1wcm92ZSBvdXIgc3VwcG9ydCBzZ

XJ2aWNlcyBhbmQgb3VyIHByb2R1Y3RzLiAgVGhlIGluZm9ybWF0aW9uI

HdpbGwgbm90IGJlIHVzZWQgZm9yIG1hcmtldGluZyBwdXJwb3Nlcy4gR

m9yIGZ1cnRoZXIgaW5mb3JtYXRpb24gb24gaG93IEFwcGxlIHRyZWF0

cyBjdXN0b21lciBpbmZvcm1hdGlvbiwgc2VlIEFwcGxlJ3MgQ3VzdG9tZX

IgUHJpdmFjeSBQb2xpY3kgYXQgaHR0cDovL3d3dy5hcHBsZS5jb20vb

GVnYWwvcHJpdmFjeS8uDQoNCklmIHlvdSB3b3VsZCBsaWtlIHRvIGN

vbXBsZXRlIHRoaXMgd2ViIHN1cnZleSwgc2l..."

I find no information about any "repair feedback" at Apple's site. "abs.apple.com" is an unregistered domain although that doesn't mean it may not be valid. Being too late to contact the repair company, I may get more info next week. In the mean time, anyone ever receive a request for feedback after a non-Apple repair?

Just a little paranoid, however, one must remember that even paranoid people have enemies! LOL! 😝

Posted on May 21, 2011 8:09 PM

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Answer 1

May 21, 2011 8:24 PM in response to xairbusdriver

Apple Business Intelligence

http://abs.apple.com

Seems to be a subdomain of apple.com

xairbusdriver wrote:

http://abs.apple.com/ssurvey/nsurvey.html?id=

Following the link you provided->> the english survey link took me to a blank page. The html and CSS code is in place but renders a blank page?

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Answer 2

xairbusdriver Author

Level 2

190 points

May 22, 2011 12:37 PM in response to leroydouglas

No doubt "apple.com" is Apple's registered domain name. "abs" may even be a sub-domain.

Should it be impossible to determine that?

Should there not be some/any indication that "abs" has something to do with "Apple Business Intelligence" or surveys of some kind?

Is it supposed to be a secret?

Even the page linked to the "abs.apple.com" proves nothing more than there is a page with two appropriately linked graphics. The page doesn't even validate! The DOCTYPE is even in the document twice! And neither time in the correct location. It proclaims to be html 4.01 transitional rather than HTML5 mentioned on other pages. Nor does Apple claim ownership or to even be the Author as it does on other pages.

I find it hard to believe that a company like Apple would allow such a page to be posted. Of course, I find it hard to believe many things!! LOL!

Further, I can find absolutely no reference of "Apple Business Intelligence" in any search of Apple's site. Perhaps "abs" stands for Apple Business Support? I didn't search for those combined terms...Nope, nothing like that at Apple's site, either.

I'll simply wait until Monday (tomorrow) and check with the Approved repair company. It simply should not be so difficult to confirm the authenticity of an Apple email, IMHO. Maybe no one else really cares. 😮

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Answer 3

May 22, 2011 1:00 PM in response to xairbusdriver

abs.apple.com is a subdomain of apple.com this is how DNS works- it is a hierarchical naming system.

The link does display the survey in the Safari browser.

The survey is certainly not asking for any mission critical data. So why all the paranoia?

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Answer 4

xairbusdriver Author

Level 2

190 points

May 22, 2011 1:11 PM in response to leroydouglas

leroydouglas wrote:

abs.apple.com is a subdomain of apple.com this is how DNS works it is a hierarchical naming system.

No argument, really, however: And I suppose there is no need to actually 'register' sub domains. Still, why is it impossible to find any mention of repair feedback or surveys of Authorized services?

Making a page display is not a problem at all. But it doesn't prove anything except that is some html/php stored on a server somewhere. Apple makes their other pages obviously owned by Apple, certainly at the recommendation of a sizable legal department. The page I viewed was not even correctly laid out, much less claimed to be made/owned by Apple. Looked more like a 'first-step-in-creating-a-page-to-make-people-think-it-belongs-to-a-real-brand! ' LOL!

Does your page source view look like valid or even acceptable html?

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Answer 5

May 22, 2011 1:47 PM in response to xairbusdriver

When I google a site specific search of the sub domain I get 78 results:

site:abs.apple.com

xairbusdriver wrote:

Does your page source view look like valid or even acceptable html?

Html pages need no doctype, validation or not to render. This all could be third party software, php includes, and subbed out to other contracts with no Apple management. Who knows and who cares.

Here is another subdomain to to google

site:bibz05.apple.com

Where does that favicon come from??? From the shared/surveystyle.css Maybe we could ask masuo ! His TODO list might be telling.

/*

Document : surveystyle

Created on : Mar 23, 2009, 5:28:57 PM

Author : masuo

Description:

Purpose of the stylesheet follows.

*/

/*

TODO customize this sample style

Syntax recommendation http://www.w3.org/TR/REC-CSS2/

*/

body { background: #FFFFFF;

margin: 5px;

font-family: Verdana, Arial, sans-serif;

font-size: 12px;

color: #000000;

}

table, td {

font-family: Verdana, Arial, sans-serif;

font-size: 12px;

border-style: none;

}

img {

border-style: none;

}

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Answer 6

xairbusdriver Author

Level 2

190 points

May 22, 2011 1:57 PM in response to leroydouglas

leroydouglas wrote:

When I google a site specific search of the sub domain I get 78 results:

site:abs.apple.com

I obviously need a better method than copy and pasting into the Google search box. 😊

Thanks for your assistance. 😀 I gotta go find another windmill to tilt...

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Answer 7

May 22, 2011 2:29 PM in response to xairbusdriver

xairbusdriver wrote:

leroydouglas wrote:

When I google a site specific
search of the sub domain
I get 78 results: " site:abs.apple.com"

I obviously need a better method than copy and pasting into the Google search box. 😊

Thanks for your assistance. 😀 I gotta go find another windmill to tilt...

Yes needs to be in search box, not address bar.

Yes back to those windmills!

Cheers!

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