Fighting Spam

Junctionbox > Support > Fighting Spam

How Junctionbox is Fighting Spam
We estimate that 33% of all incoming messages are spam (unsolicited e-mail). The volume of spam has increased 10X throughout 2001. The increase is staggering. We're sure that you've noticed it. It may not seem like it sometimes but Junctionbox fights spam on several fronts: the Mail Abuse Prevention System, internally-maintained lists of offending domains and IP address, and some text filtering. (As an anti-virus measure, we also block messages containing specific attachment types. See our E-mail support section for details.)

Our most potent defense is the Mail Abuse Prevention System (MAPS). MAPS has 3 components: the Real-Time Black Hole List (RBL) a list of known spam domains, the Relay Spam Stopper (RSS) a list of mail servers known to be sending spam and the Dial-Up User List (DUL) a list of dial-up accounts known to generate spam. MAPS is very effective at stopping spam. We believe it stops over 50% of our incoming spam.

Next in line are internal lists of offending domain names and IP addresses. If spam gets through the MAPS block and we can uniquely identify the source, we add them to our list. This catches another 10-15% of the spam. We also occasionally use text filtering. Text filtering scans each message looking for specific text strings such as "XXX". For certain types of spam text filtering can be very effective. It places a tremendous load on the mail server however since each character of every message must be tested. Due to this limitation, we use text filtering sparingly.

Overall, our defense seems only 60-70% effective. Spammers often use techniques that make it difficult or impossible for us to block and we need to be careful that we don't block legitimate messages. One person's spam could be another's legitimate message. We tend to err on the side of letting the message through.

To give you an idea of the volume of mail we receive and spam we block, here are the mail server statistics from a recent month. For "fun" we've included the top ten most popular spam Subjects and Viruses we've blocked.

Overview of Self Defense Against Spam
Junctionbox can do only so much. You are a soldier in this war against spam. With the help untold web resources, we've assembled the following strategies and tips to help you wage a self defense battle against spam. We've taken a set of guidelines from CNET and updated their content.

Prevent
If you send e-mail or surf the net, it's not hard for spammers to find your contact information. Here's 5 activites that will expose you to spam:

Chatting online
Posting notes to message boards or newsgroups
Joining mailing lists
Creating a member profile on a Web site
Creating a Web page (where you may be listed as a webmaster)

Precautions to reduce your exposure:

Create dummy identities
Be careful where you expose your address
Check a web site's privacy statement
Avoid replying to any spam

Don't engage in risky net behaviours. CNET ran tests to find out what generated the most spam. Read their results.

Evade
Spammers often use programs to scan the net and collect e-mail addresses. No matter how careful you are with your address, you'll get spam. When it arrives:

Delete it The best defense is a vigorous DEL key.
Be careful when replying. Replying often validates your address and ensures that you'll get even more spam.
Don't click that link! Many spammers are using html messages with embedded links. Often those links do not go to where they say.
Use e-mail filters in your mail program. They normally are not very effective but they can't hurt. Outlook can block messages from specified senders.
Use a disposable address. Sneakermail and SpamMotel create disposal fake addresses that are tied to your real address.

Defend
Junctionbox is your front line of defense. There are many programs available to peak in your mailbox and analyze things before the messages reach your inbox. Here's some of the more popular:

Or just search the download sections of CNET or ZDNET.

Report
Reporting spam is one of the most productive defensive strategies. ISPs generally hate spammers as much as you. Spammers move around a lot. We don't know we have a spammer until they start spamming. Often we don't know about it unless we get a complaint of a spammer in our midst. Once we know, they don't last long. Reporting is key. The problem is getting the right information to the right people. Thankfully there's an organization to help - SpamCop. SpamCop's reporting web site automates the process. It can be confusing at first so please follow our How to Use SpamCop instructions.

Contact the advertiser. Many times the advertiser is not aware that someone is using their name in spam. With all the negative publicity of spam, they are definitely motivated to stop the activity.

Contact your state and national representatives and urge them to pass strong anti-spam legislation. Several anti-spam laws for the US are pending in Congress. Florida does not have a state law against spam. The SpamCon foundation has an excellent web site tracking legislative news. Another source is the SpamLaws web site.

Other Resources
Coalition Against Unsolicited Commercial Email
Forum for Responsible and Ethical E-mail
SpamHaus - Who's Responsible for Spam
Save the net
Elsop's Anti-Spam Page