outlook express spam filter

The upcoming version of Microsoft's Exchange Server will push e-mail directly from the server to Windows Mobile devices, offering the same service as the Blackberry.The new Direct Push Technology will come in a Community Technology Preview (CTP) of Exchange Server 2003 Service Pack 2, with the full version by the end of the year, said Exchange product manager Martha DeAmicis.The push technology no longer relies on SMS to notify a Windows Mobile device. Instead, it sends e-mail directly from Exchange to Windows Mobile devices, giving users a faster and more efficient way of retrieving messages.RIM requires the use of middleware on top of Exchange to allow messages to be sent directly to BlackBerry devices, which costs businesses and end users extra licence fees. "With Windows Mobile, you can talk direct from Exchange to a mobile device with no server and no [extra] cost," said John Starkweather, group product manager for the mobile and embedded devices team at Microsoft. It is however dependent upon the inclusion of Windows Mobile 5.0 Messaging and Security Feature Pack. An early version of this software is currently in the hands of Window Mobile OEMs, but devices that come with the technology pre-installed will not ship until early next year. However, customers will be able to buy Windows Mobile devices that can download the messaging and security feature pack from November.There will also be new security features in Exchange SP2, such as Web-based remote wiping of applications and e-mails on a device in case it should get lost or stolen. There will also be an intelligent spam message filter, and support for anti-spam technology Sender ID. The CTP of Exchange Server 2003 SP2 also will include a Mailbox Fundamentals feature with improvements to the way public e-mail folders can be managed and tracked, as well as an increase in the storage limit for Exchange Standard Edition customers, DeAmicis said.

Junk Snail MailTo get your name off national mailing lists (understand that it won't stop all unsolicited mail):
The Direct Marketing Association is the "oldest and largest national trade association serving the direct and interactive marketing field." Visit these sections of their Web site for information about reducing unsolicited snail mail:DMA Consumer Assistance: How And Where To Find HelpGetting off mailing lists/Mail Preference Service
ADVO, Inc. is the nation's "largest targeted home-delivered print advertising provider." They describe themselves as being the "force and the name behind some of the most recognizable and successful direct-mail marketing and advertising campaigns in the country." For information on removing yourself from their lists, visit advo.com.
More tips can be found on the Web site www.junkbusters.com.
Another step might cut down on unsolicited credit card offers."Changes to the federal Fair Credit Reporting Act took effect Sept. 30, 1997. Under one provision of the new law, consumers can call toll-free numbers to remove themselves from lists used by credit-card companies and some direct marketers to solicit them by mail. Consumers need call only one of the three major national credit bureaus to get off all such lists."The special "opt-out" numbers are:Equifax -- (888) 567-8688Experian -- (800) 353-0809Trans Union -- (888) 5OPTOUT or 888-567-8688If you answer the questions, you can opt out of mailing lists of the major credit reporting agencies for two years.
Junk E-MailWhat about all that unsolicited e-mail? Some of the spam borders on X-rated.Tips for reducing the amount of unsolicited e-mail:
Don't display your e-mail address in public. Spammers use automated tools to collect valid addresses from Web pages, chat rooms and online directories. Consider using a second e-mail address for public correspondence.
Consider using software to filter e-mails. Some are free, and some work better than others. Most can be customized to allow personal e-mails from family members, for example, but block many advertisements. The most prominent antivirus vendors are increasingly building spam-filter utilities into their security products.
Check a Web site's privacy policy before you submit your e-mail address to see whether it permits the company to share your address with online marketing companies; if it does see whether it's possible to "opt out" from such an arrangement.
For years, experts have discouraged Internet users from replying to unwanted e-mails with requests to be removed from future mailings because that verifies that spam was sent to a valid address. Under the new law, however, marketers are required to honor such do-not-send requests after the first unsolicited advertisement.
Here are other tips:
To try to reduce spam, you can register for free online with the Direct Marketing Association's E-Mail Preference Service.
The government wants your spam. Forward unwanted or deceptive e-mails to uce@ftc.gov, where federal regulators are creating a huge spam database to go after the most egregious marketers.The Federal Trade Commission also offers tips for people who are trying to eliminate junk e-mail and deceptive e-mail:FTC E-Mail Tips

war is afoot between legitimate senders of mass email and spammers. There is an ever-increasing number of tools, in the form of algorithms and list management tools. These tools will affect email delivery and reduce the amount of spam that has hijacked the email industry.As reported from the New Scientist, a team of researchers from IBM, and Cornell University developed a new algorithm for detecting spam in emails, called SMTP Path Analysis. The algorithm works by examining the path information (probably by looking at the Received headers), and detects patterns that are likely to be the route of a spammer. ?...the algorithm is not meticulous enough to efficiently catch spam on its own, but works well in combination with content filtering tools. "And it catches stuff that content filters can't," Engineers at ActivSoftware recently announced their new algorithm called 'slow start outbound connection ramping.' This new server technology attempts to avoid becoming flagged as spam by automatically monitoring delivery success and failure rates and adjusting simultaneous connections to an email service provider based upon those parameters. It begins with a very low number of simultaneous connections to any one ESP for any one IP address. It monitors delivery failure to success ratios and slowly ramps up the number of connections to that ESP from that particular IP. In another recent attempt to help legitimate email senders avoid becoming flagged as spammers, researchers at ActivSoftware, using a bayesian spam filter, sifted through over two hundred thousand words flowing through their email servers and itemized the top 50, or so, words most likely to trigger spam filters. The words are organized by their spam to ham ratio, or illegitimate to legitimate email ratio. The team analyzed many factors within this data, but the most compelling was the spam to ham ratios. Words such as click and here don't rank as high, since they are used often in legitimate email. Whereas words like madam, rarely found in legitimate email, while readily found in spam email, had very high ratios. Using this method the team created, what they deemed, ?A superior list of spam words.? The top twelve words follow: - homeowner - discreet - madam - materially - unclaimed - anticipates - soma - preapproved - unconditionally - beneficiary - refinance - intercourse

One spammer's misfortune could be an Internet user's dream as AOL plans to give away a fully-loaded Hummer H2 and nearly $100,000 in cash and gold bars. The online service received the loot through a provision in the CAN-SPAM act, which allows courts to seize property obtained through profits from the sending of unsolicited e-mails.
In addition to seizing the spammer's assets, AOL also won a $13 million judgment against the company, and will donate the seized computer equipment to schools in Northern Virginia.
The property will be given away through the AOL Spammer's Gold Sweepstakes, which will begin Wednesday and will run through August 19. Participants will be able to enter once per day by answering a question on computer security and safety.
Every day during the period a $1,000 prize will be awarded with the grand prize drawing at the end of the contest. The grand prize winner will receive the 2003 Hummer H2 and nearly $85,000 in cash and gold bars.
All of the loot was seized from a then 20-year old man in New Hampshire following a successful campaign to shut down and sue the spammer. At his height, AOL claims the man had 40 computers sending out millions of spam e-mails per day.
In on day in January 2004 alone, the spammer generated 100,000 complaints from AOL members.
"The safety and security of our members is Job No. 1 at AOL, and that means taking aggressive action against spammers and scammers. I am delighted that our efforts are paying off, literally, with the seizure of these assets and the sweepstakes," Jon Miller, Chairman and CEO of AOL said in prepared remarks.
Miller pointed to statistics that show an 85 percent drop in spam on the service, announcing that spam filters now block 1.4 billion messages per day as opposed to a high of 2.4 billion messages in one day in 2003.
AOL also issued a terse warning to spammers sending unsolicited mail to the service. "AOL will find you and sue you. And AOL will do everything it can to make sure its members end up with any money you made as a spammer."

Life just got a bit harder for spammers trying to reach one coveted audience—college students. Last week, a federal appeals court ruled against an online dating service called White Buffalo Ventures, which had been battling the University of Texas-Austin for the right to send unsolicited E-mail come-ons to UT students.
The spat started in 2003, when White Buffalo obtained UT E-mail addresses under the Freedom of Information Act and spammed a sizable chunk of the student body, pitching a site called longhornsingles.com. A number of upstanding students complained, so the university issued a cease-and-desist letter to White Buffalo, which the company ignored. UT countered by putting a filter on its Web server that blocked E-mail from a White Buffalo site to all addresses ending in "@utexas.edu." Instead of backing off at that point, like most spammers do, White Buffalo sued UT, claiming that the university was violating both the First Amendment and the federal Can-Spam Act of 2003, which established rules for bulk E-mailers.
A lower court ruled that the university was within its rights in establishing spam filters; the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals agreed. The ruling could put limits on other spammers directing bulk E-mail to colleges and universities.
Spammers often find ways around the rules, though—one reason that two thirds of all E-mail traffic consists of spam, according to security firm Symantec. And as annoying as it can be, some businesses say it's an essential marketing tool. Unsolicited offers for pharmaceuticals make up over 40 percent of all spam traffic, according to Sophos, which develops antivirus software. And the fastest-growing spam segment in the first half of this year involved stock scams, which grew at 10 percent per month, according to Sophos. Blasts offering mortgages and adult content also continue to fill E-mail in-boxes.

AOL Busts Spammer - Then Gives Away Ill-Gotten Profits
Dulles, Virginia - (via THE HOSTING NEWS) - August 10, 2005 - America Online today announced that spam is down more than 85% on the AOL service, and AOL's anti-spam filters are blocking more than 1.4 billion pieces of spam each day, as compared to a high of 2.4 billion messages blocked in a single day in 2003.AOL also announced that it has recovered nearly $100,000 worth of gold bars and cash, as well as a fully-loaded 2003 Hummer H2, from a major spammer that AOL caught with the help of its members.As a reward to AOL members, visitors to AOL.com and web users, the spammers' ill-gotten loot is being given away through the ''AOL Spammer's Gold Sweepstakes'', which starts today. Additionally, the company said it would donate tens of thousands of dollars worth of high-end computer equipment seized from this spammer to local public schools and school systems in Northern Virginia.The gold, cash and the Hummer were seized as part of the first lawsuit filed by AOL under the federal CAN-SPAM Act of 2003, and aided by AOL members who have used the ''Report Spam'' button to help AOL anti-spam, digital detectives investigate and snare one of the country's most prolific spam gangs.In addition to these assets, AOL has also obtained a $13 million judgment in the case against the remaining members of the spam gang.Jon Miller, Chairman and CEO of America Online explained, ''The safety and security of our members is Job No. 1 at AOL, and that means taking aggressive action against spammers and scammers. I am delighted that our efforts are paying off, literally, with the seizure of these assets and the sweepstakes. Today, we're putting the brakes on spammers and celebrating our gold standard spam protections for the AOL service and the AIM Mail product at AOL.com. Our hard work in fighting spam is paying off in another way as well - since November 2003 when spam was at its peak, we've achieved a dramatic and hugely beneficial decline in the amount of spam reaching our members' email boxes.''The company attributes this success to its multi-pronged approach in fighting the scourge of spam, which includes a combination of software tools, filtering technology, public policy, litigation and enforcement, and industry partnership.The Sweepstakes begins August 10 and runs through August 19. AOL members can enter the sweepstakes at AOL Keyword: Spam Sweepstakes; non-members can enter at http://aolhummer.onlinepromo.com. Entrants will have a chance to win daily cash prizes as well as the Grand Prize -- a Hummer H2 and approximately $85,000 in gold bars and cash. Each day throughout the promotion period, participants may gain one additional entry in the Grand Prize drawing and one (1) entry in the daily ''spammer cash'' drawing ($1,000 each day) by returning to the site to answer the special ''AOL Spammer's Gold'' question for that day that focuses on security and safety issues. Those that participate each day throughout the 10-day promotion period will receive an Official AOL Spam Patrol certificate.

Sophos Identifies the Most Prevalent Spam Categories of 2005
Pump-and-dump stock scams increased while porn spam decreased over last six months
Lynnfield, MA - infoZine -While emails peddling snake-oil meds and low-interest loans continue to irk computer users and clog corporate networks, dangerous new categories of spam are becoming more prevalent according to Sophos, a global leader in network security, which today published the results of its research on the most prominent spam categories during the first six months of the year.Researchers from SophosLabs™ analyzed the spam received in its global network of spam traps. Sophos experts found that "pump-and-dump" stock scams are on the rise, and unsolicited pill or medication email, including generic or non-brand name versions of Viagra and other pharmaceuticals, accounted for more than 40% of all spam traffic.The top five spam categories spanning January 2005 through June 2005 are as follows:
"Over the last six months, we've seen medication and mortgage spam retain their notorious ranking atop the spam charts, while unsolicited pornography, though still accounting for about 10% of all spam, is slipping downward," said Gregg Mastoras, senior security analyst at Lynnfield-based, Sophos. "The most interesting development, however, is the increased volume of stock scam spam, representing a new financial threat to somewhat naïve online investors."Sophos's analysis shows that, during the first half of 2005, the volume of stock scam spam has increased at an average rate of 10% per month."The purpose behind the pump-and-dump stock racket is to quickly and cheaply disperse false information about a company's stock, along with information obtained from recent press releases, to potential investors via email," Mastoras explained. "Typically targeting microcap companies stock, once these fraudsters dump their shares, and then stop advertising the stock, the price often falls, and investors ultimately lose their cash."Pump-and-dump campaigns tend to run for short durations, keeping overall volume low. Even though some of the information provided is accurate, the deceptive and unsolicited nature of the messages qualifies them as spam. The majority of stock scam spam campaigns employ obfuscation techniques, using word variations such as "st0ck" or "stox" to avoid being caught by spam filters. Messages can arrive in many different formats, such as HTML or plain text, and are almost always sent via hijacked PCs known as zombies."Social engineering through email, where scam artists take advantage of unsophisticated computer users, is on the rise and represents a dangerous trend," said Brian Burke, IDC Research Manager. "Stock scams, combined with traditional phishing techniques, can result in significant financial loss for victims of these swindles."Sophos recommends that the most effective way for businesses to reduce spam and other threats is to adopt a multi-layered defense as well as implement a best practice policy regarding email account usage. Users can also learn how to best minimize the influx of unwanted email by following a few simple guidelines.

Ipswitch has today announced that spam is down by over 20 per cent on the previously recorded period. According to a survey conducted for the company, 74 per cent of e-mail received over the Summer period was unwanted spam, down from 93 per cent over the Easter period.Although mortgage and loan spam held on to the top spot, it fell from 44 per cent - a third of spam e-mails this time. Second remained unwanted e-mails offering various types of medication (up from 18 per cent to 22 per cet).Next was the new trend of e-mails attempting to 'phish' recipients' banking details with spurious claims of Lottery wins and online gambling accounts (12.5 per cent up from 9 per cent), with various pornographic offerings rising to the occasion at number four. Last was spam offering pirated software with 9 per cent of the total spam received.'Although the percentage of spam arriving in e-mail inboxes can vary substantially, the importance of having efficient filters in place is as relevant as ever because productivity can be adversely affected by even small amounts of messaging spam,' said Ipswitch's vice president of marketing, Alex Neihaus.'Businesses lose countless man-hours a week in staff having to sift through the deluge of e-mail in their inbox to get to those that have a real affect on the bottom line. Collaboration is a cornerstone of doing business in the 21st century and companies cannot do enough to protect this vital part of their business communications.''Although the user is becoming more knowledgeable in their approach to spam, the spammers are at least one step ahead. The rise in phishing Spam is the most worrying, as this is often quite sophisticated - and has the highest financial repercussions for users. It is of massive importance that users have suitable anti-spam capabilities in place,' said Quocirca analyst Clive Longbottom.

Every day I receive one or two e-mails from some unknown address with a subject that is just meaningless words, and the body of the message is usually an ad for Viagra or other prescription meds or maybe a Rolex watch. I bounce and block each one I receive but they continue their daily barrage. Is there anything more I can do short of changing my address? Two words: white list. That rather indelicate term commonly refers to the little-known but hugely useful tools in most e-mail software and Web e-mail services that let one quickly isolate desired messages in special, spam- free folders. You let all of the potency pill pushers, junk jewelry joints and Nigerian escrow schemes wallow in the so-called Inbox while you use a personally approved list to create your real Inbox, which will accept only the messages you want to see.
Believe me, this simple strategy will bring peace at very little cost.
Rest assured, if your rich Uncle Harold (or is it Aunt Hermione?) wants to leave you a fortune, the lawyers will find you some other way than e-mail to give you the good news. Meanwhile, the rest of those unk unks (unknown unknowns) can just go fish while your time spent on e- mail gets devoted to folks you know.
Like a great many e-mail users, your account works through a software-based system called POP mail, or post office protocol, and your fix is to create what are called rules for how your software handles each incoming message. The overwhelming majority of POP mail accounts use either Microsoft Outlook Express or the Outlook module in Microsoft Office, so let's focus there first, then move on to similar procedures available in other e-mail services.
When a POP mail message arrives from somebody you want admitted into your circle, click on the Message item in the Outlook Express toolbar and then select the option to create a rule based upon that person's message. The menu this triggers lets you specify all notes from that sender be moved from the Inbox to a new folder, which you can create.
Give that folder a distinctive name like Real Inbox. Then, with all desirable incoming messages, you simply click on Messages and make a rule to order messages from that particular sender to be moved to the Real Inbox instead of the un-vetted Inbox.
The routine is almost identical for users of Microsoft Outlook, except the message rule tool is accessed by giving the subject line of a message a right-click instead of opening the Message toolbar.
The white list scheme has worked so well with formal e-mail software that most of the Web- based e-mail services have created similar functions. For example, people with free e-mail accounts at Yahoo can select a Mail Options tool at the top of the main display of e-mail messages and then create what are called Filters instead of rules that work exactly the same way.
Google's free gmail.com service uses a system called Labels to let customers create customized inboxes.
Microsoft's hotmail.com and msn.com Web-based services use a streamlined scheme called Built Contacts to let users quickly go through a list of e-mail messages and check a box alongside each sender to be added to the list of acceptable sources.
You can always make checks of the regular Inbox from time to time if you fret some stranger somewhere is going to send you an e-mail worth reading. But with one of these white lists up and running, you'll find yourself checking the spam blighted Inbox less and less. I need help organizing my Favorites in alphabetical order. I've tried and tried to figure out how to do it with no success. Can you help me? Despite the item above this one, I love short answers.
Open the Favorites tool in the Microsoft Internet Explorer and give a right-click on any item listed. A pop-up menu will appear. One command is Sort by Name. Do it. The favorites will be listed alphabetically.
If something you like is too far down, just select the Rename command in the same menu and put a couple of A's in front and then sort the list again to bring it to the top.
Jim Coates writes about .

The new version of Spam Blocker 2.1 delivered by the SoftInform company provides maximum efficient protection for user computer (user mailbox in particular) from torrents of "spam". This is due to the fact that all correspondence is analyzed before it is downloaded from the mail server. The application checks the mail and retrieves the headings of all letters pending in the user mailbox (email addresses, sender names, letter subjects, etc.). The new release of "remote" ad blocker features a substantially tuned up interface. The added nice-to-haves include automatic and manual mail check buttons and a visualized process of receiving mail (an animated icon in the system tray and a tool tip with the total number of letters and the number of letters blocked by the application). The main alterations, however, concerned the "technical" facet of the application. Spam Blocker 2.1 is sported as a self-learning application. The new version of the spam-filter automatically registers sender names and servers (domain addresses) in the black (with letters marked as spam) and white (correct) lists.A new release of Spam Blocker from Softinform Version 2.1One of the major problems in the Internet is nothing more nor less than unwanted advertising letters, also known as "spam" - wasted incoming megabytes of information. The mail server filters block only a fraction of proposals to "increase" or "relax". The mighty "authorization" protection is, first of all, expensive (let's not forget the monthly fee), and second of all, it is not very convenient for the people on your contact list (they will have to go through a long and humdrum "access" process). If you want to rid your mail box of "spam", you need a comprehensive anti-ad "shield" that will save the money you spend on traffic by downloading bulky mail, as well as the time you spend on viewing and deleting useless emails. The new version of Spam Blocker 2.1 delivered by the SoftInform company provides maximum efficient protection for user computer (user mailbox in particular) from torrents of "spam". This is due to the fact that all correspondence is analyzed before it is downloaded from the mail server. The application checks the mail and retrieves the headings of all letters pending in the user mailbox (email addresses, sender names, letter subjects, etc.). The new release of "remote" ad blocker features a substantially tuned up interface. The added nice-to-haves include automatic and manual mail check buttons and a visualized process of receiving mail (an animated icon in the system tray and a tool tip with the total number of letters and the number of letters blocked by the application). The main alterations, however, concerned the "technical" facet of the application. Spam Blocker 2.1 is sported as a self-learning application. The new version of the spam-filter automatically registers sender names and servers (domain addresses) in the black (with letters marked as spam) and white (correct) lists.By using various settings of Spam Blocker 2.1 you can fine-adjust the application to suit your needs. Various modes for checking messages (automatic and manual), support of an unlimited number of accounts, checking the mail box at set intervals (e.g., every five minutes) or at user's will, updating system lists, flexible rule settings and lists editing ability make Spam Blocker 2.1 a convenient and irreplaceable tool for blocking "spam". Sick and tired of endless "spam"? Registering new ("clean") mail boxes over and over again? Every day dozens of letters for you and thousands for your company burning up megabytes of traffic that is by no means free? All it takes is to install Spam Blocker 2.1. And watch annoying and useless e-mail advertising disappear.