Case Studies ...

The end of spam? Probably not, but this can help .....

When our customers started to complain about how much SPAM they received, they contacted MAP Business Solutions and asked how they could control it.

After an in-depth study on SPAM, we noticed that the SPAM was coming from two main sources;

• E-mail addresses that were now part of a registry or mailing list.
• E-mail addresses posted on Web sites.

We initially felt that we could implement a SPAM filter, that would block out incoming e-mails that contained certain words like Viagara or tried to verify the source of the e-mail. One of the solutions that we looked at was IHATESPAM. Although a good solution for "home" users, we discovered that for the corporate world it was only partially successful.

We then looked at a system that used a form based system with an ISP. For example www.iPermitMail.com. This is a terrific solution that works as follows:

• Someone sends an e-mail to you (the recipient)
• ISP intercepts the e-mail message and looks at the senders e-mail address and compares it to an approved senders database controlled and managed by the targeted recipient (you).
• If the senders e-mail address is not in this approved list, the ISP sends a request back to the sender for "further information".
• Sender of the original e-mail fills out and submits this form.
• Recipient reviews the information that the sender has just submitted and approves the sender.
• Once the sender is approved, all e-mails are then released by the ISP to your regular POP server.

The downside to this solution is that if the sender doesn't want to fill in the "approval form" or has a SPAM filter themselves, that they would t receive the request form.

One customer though was unsatisfied with this solution because they wanted a link on their web site to say "e-mail us". We therefore implemented a very drastic approach that to-date is still working.

• Firstly, we gave our customer a new e-mail address. The old e-mail address will eventually be retired, once satisfied that the only mail received on this address is SPAM.
• Secondly, using our FreeSurveysOnline system, we created an online form that his clients could use on the company web site. When the form is filled out, the information from the form is sent from FreeSurveysOnline to our customer's new e-mail address. We then modified the web site, so that the e-mail link now pointed to the FreeSurveysOnline form.
• Thirdly, we gave our customer a second e-mail address that would be used when signing up for web sites or eZines. This would be used to separate any SPAM that would come from these "sign ups" from a rogue web site that "sold" or inappropriately used our customers e-mail address.
• Lastly, to make the viewing of e-mail efficient, we created separate folders in Outlook to manage the incoming e-mail as follows. Using the "rules" feature found in all e-mail clients, we moved incoming e-mail to these folders depending where the e-mail was downloaded from.
  • Inbox (new e-mail address)
  • SPAM (old e-mail address)
  • Signups (e-mail for signups)

Although this is a drastic solution, we felt that until a new method of electronic communication is implemented, that these two solutions against SPAM are effective.