Hitmetrix - User behavior analytics & recording

Spam threatens the e-mail channel

Say the name Spamhaus in a room full of e-mail marketers and you 
likely will get a lot of dirty looks. It runs one of the biggest and 
most widely used blacklists available to Internet service providers 
and corporate administrators for identifying and blocking spam.  The 
folks who use the list find it extremely helpful in keeping spam out 
of their networks.
Spamhaus currently protects about 500 million mailboxes with its 
various blacklists.  It also works closely with international law 
enforcement, providing evidence and data to pursue criminal spammers 
on the Internet.
The Spamhaus project has become one of the most respected anti-spam 
organizations in the world.  Yet some marketers feel that the 
Spamhaus Block List is too easy to get on and often difficult to get 
off.
Marketers need to understand what is happening across the vast 
communication network to which they belong.  You may have read that 
the spam problem is getting worse. The numbers are so huge they numb 
the mind.
The spam problem is quickly becoming a very big deal.  Such a big 
deal, in fact, that it threatens the viability of the channel.  As 
networks become overwhelmed with spam and viruses, they will become 
increasingly unstable.
Moreover, the increase in phishing and other fraudulent e-mails 
erodes consumer confidence, threatening the effectiveness of 
legitimate e-mail.  It’s sad to say, but spammers are getting 
tactically sophisticated faster than many legitimate marketers.
You don’t have to completely agree with Spamhaus’ definition of spam 
to agree with its greater mission to rid the world’s inboxes of 
scams, criminal intent and viruses.
Spamhaus recently turned its attention to the issue of zombies and 
botnets.  Botnets are a specific type of virus that infects 
computers, creating remote-controlled zombies spewing out spam on 
behalf of the virus-writer.
In response, Spamhaus has launched the Policy Block List.  It is 
meant to be a compendium of IP addresses submitted by ISPs that are 
not allowed to send e-mail.
By assembling this list, Spamhaus will make it easier for network 
administrators and ISPs to identify and block e-mail coming from 
zombie computers.  By participating in this list you help maintain 
the viability and integrity of the e-mail channel.
My advice to marketers: Learn what’s really going on with regard to 
spam and how receiving networks are dealing with the issue.  Get 
familiar with phishing, spyware, zombies and all the other nasty 
stuff.  Then, advocate, advocate, advocate.  Working in concert with 
anti-spam forces is going to serve the greater good of everyone

Total
0
Shares
Related Posts