[AT] returned mail - PLEASE READ

[Spencer Yost]

>either his server is not accepting mail or because of something
>called "mail abuse.com".  Even mail I send to him with these things
>as attachments are returned as undeliverable.
>


To Cecil and a few others that have written about this:

Here is how mail works at ATIS.  Anything you send to ATIS goes through a
SPAM filtering service at mail-abuse.com.  It doesn't matter how you
address it, it goes through mail-abuse.com.  You can address it to the list
or address it directly to me, it goes through the SPAM filtering service.
Mail-abuse-com is the oldest and professionally the most widely respected
SPAM service.   For those of you in the industry, you will remember them as
the original developers of DNS/RBLs (DNS based real time black hole lists).
  They are, to this day, the best by far.  

How does this affect you?   Mail-abuse clamps filters mail primarily based
on the IP address of the sender.  If your IP address is a source of SPAM or
has been reported as SPAM, it will be stopped.   However, because IP
address assignments are dynamic, the block usually occurs to a group of
addresses.  This means if mail-abuse.com is filtering your mail, one of the
following is true:

1 - Your local ISP(or local branch of a national ISP), has compromised
servers and SPAM is being sent out from them and the ISP's mail servers
have been added to the mail-abuse lists.

2 - You are a source of SPAM.  This happens when your IP address or
username/address at your ISP has been reported as a source of SPAM.
Investigations have to prove you are a source of SPAM (they never clamp an
address without an investigation) .

3 - Your group of IP addresses has been blocked as a source of SPAM.  Whole
blocks are usuallu done only WITH THE PERMISSION of your ISP.(this is why
many AOL users couldn't send for about a day and a half last summer:
AOL/Time Warner cooperated with mail-abuse to shut down a whole block of
addresses until the problem accounts could be deactivated).

I am very sorry if this inconveniences anyone, but SPAM is a very real
threat to system security and stability.    No one can operate in this day
and time without SPAM filtering.  Regardless, all of this is usually only
temporary.  As Cecil found out, he could send one day but could not the
next day.   Then could send again the third day.  To give you an idea as to
what I deal with, here is my SPAM filtering report for one of the larger
domains I host.   This isn't even ATIS!!!!!


>DATE       Accepted Mail(%)       Rejected Spam(%)
>--------------------------------------------------
>1208           795( 36.02%)          1412( 63.98%)
>1209           812( 29.92%)          1902( 70.08%)
>1210           689( 30.64%)          1560( 69.36%)
>1211           872( 36.95%)          1488( 63.05%)
>1212           867( 32.02%)          1841( 67.98%)
>1213           955( 34.08%)          1847( 65.92%)
>1214          1045( 42.57%)          1410( 57.43%)
>1215          1061( 40.57%)          1554( 59.43%)
>1216          1108( 37.95%)          1812( 62.05%)
>1217          1331( 34.46%)          2531( 65.54%)

As you can see, without SPAM filtering, I am sunk - mail levels would
nearly triple and complaints would increase 10 fold from customers.
Anyone with the same domain same for 10+ years or the same email address
for 10+ years knows exactly what I am talking about.  Bottom line is the
servers get swamped and I can't operate.

PS:   The 1331 message that got through ?   About half are still SPAM
according to the user at the company that owns the domain.

Spencer Yost
Owner, ATIS
Plow the Net!
http://www.atis.net