Anti Server Filtering

Some stories of alleged misuse or misapplication of blacklists. Many of these objections are made by spammers, which is unsuprising. The more interesting complaints are those by normal Internet users, some of whom blame the anti spammers rather than the spammers for the necessity to block whole Internet providers to preserve the viability of email.

• DDoS Attacks
• Anti Server Blacklists in General
• Anti SPEWS
• Anti SpamCop
• Anti MAPS
• Anti SpamAssassin
• Anti Spamhaus
• Anti AOL

Related

• Blacklisting vs. Content Filters
• Cases Against Antispammers

DDoS Attacks

Several Distributed Denial of Service (DDoS) attacks took place over summer 2003 against prominent anti-spam DNSBLs. The attacks were enabled by the distribution of trojans using a series of email worms, such as Fizzer, Sobig and Mimail. Attacks have continued sporadically since then, including against this very site. For more on the use of email worms and trojans by spammers see Spam Trojans.

Virus and dDoS Attacks on Spamhaus - www.spamhaus.org/cyberattacks/
Steve Linford of Spamhaus on the DDoS attacks - groups.google.com/groups?q=author:linford%40spamhaus.org+ddos&scoring=d&filter=0
Spamhaus DDoS attack - www.theregister.co.uk/2006/09/18/spamhaus_ddos_attack/
Spam blacklists buckle under DDos attack - www.isolani.co.uk/blog/spam/MoreSpamBlacklistsBuckleUnderDdosAttack
Spamhaus enters into an agreement with Melior to protect against dDoS attacks - www.bgp4.com/?news_id=4
Melior enters agreement to protect SORBS against SoBig.F-related dDoS attacks - www.bgp4.com/?news_id=6
DDoSWorld on the Attacks - www.ddosworld.com/frame.php?search_string=spam
Blacklists Down from Fear of DDoS - www.circleid.com/posts/blacklists_down_from_fear_of_ddos/
Saboteurs hit spam's blockers - www.boston.com/news/nation/articles/2003/08/28/saboteurs_hit_spams_blockers/
Blue Security under DDoS attack - thespamdiaries.blogspot.com/2006/05/blue-security-under-ddos-attack.html
The DDoS Diaries - spamnationinfo.blogspot.com/2007/01/ddos-diaries.html
Anti-stock-spam site Spamnation taken out by DDoS - www.stockhouse.com/blogs.asp?page=viewpost&blogID=198&postID=9025
Storm Worm DDoS Attack - www.secureworks.com/research/threats/view.html?threat=storm-worm
Anti-spam sites weather DDoS assault - www.theregister.co.uk/2007/06/11/anti-spam_ddos/
URIBL, SURBL and Spamhaus suffer SYN floods - daryl.dostech.ca/blog/2007/06/06/uribl-surbl-and-spamhaus-suffer-syn-floods/

Anti Server Blacklists in General

The Spam Problem: Moving Beyond RBLs - www.whirlycott.com/phil/antispam/rbl-bad/rbl-bad.html
mPowernet -- caught in the spam-wars crossfire - www.tbtf.com/resource/mpowernet.html
Blind Vigilantes - www.ddj.com/architect/184411674
spam fighting gone a little too far - www.unix-girl.com/blog/archives/000579.html - RFC Ignorant
Anti DNSBL rant - www.info-world.com/spam.diagnosis/
National Internet Business Alliance - niba4u.com/
Freedom Knights of Usenet - www.jetcafe.org/dave/usenet/
RBL -- Power Without Accountability - www.ifn.net/classic/rblstory.htm, www.ifn.net/classic/nanae.htm
MX Probe Data Base - mxdb.com/
Cris Mooney - www.forus.com/csm/misc/SpamSpam.html
Objections and Complaints to Rhyolite - www.rhyolite.com/anti-spam/objections/index.shtml
Coping With Spam Accusations - www.managernewz.com/managernewz-21-20021007CopingwithSpamAccusations.html
I Did Not Get My Email - groups.yahoo.com/group/i_did_not_get_my_email/
Why Blacklisting Spammers Is A Bad Idea - radio.weblogs.com/0105910/categories/sidebars/2003/11/09.html
BlarsBL - www.xach.com/blarsbl.html
Why can't I get to the blocking list from ATT's network? - www.spamcop.net/fom-serve/cache/375.html
“Deliver My Mail” - deliver-my-mail.sitesell.com/
Noncommercial Email Lists: Collateral Damage in the Fight Against Spam - www.eff.org/wp/?f=SpamCollateralDamage.html
Public Interest Position on Junk Email: Protect Innocent Users - www.eff.org/spam/position_on_junk_email.php
Internet Anti-Defamation League - www.iadl.org/
SORBS.us - www.sorbs.us/
Tim Bolen — Where've You Been?... - www.bolenreport.net/feature_articles/feature_article037.htm
Affidavit of Tim Bolen - www.bolenreport.net/feature_articles/feature_article040.htm
Busting blocks: appropriate legal remedies for wrongful inclusion in spam filters under U.S. law - www.panix.com/~jezor/EzorBustingBlocksArticle.pdf

Anti SPEWS

SPEWS was a DNS blackhole list, which had a reputation as quick to list and slow to delist. It caused what is referred to as “collateral damage”, since it did not solely list sources of spam, but expanded listings to include other parts of an ISP that is not dealing effectively with a spam problem. It ceased updates in late 2006.

SPEWS.org is NOT a Spam filter - www.lanechange.net/html/spews.shtml
Why I Won't Use SPEWS - www.clapper.org/spam/spews.html
SPEWS sucks - www.acky.net/spews.html
SPEWS No Longer Anonymous? - www.chatmag.com/help/6012003_spews.html
SPEWS — ONE OF THE GREATEST DANGERS TO THE INTERNET - www.neweststuff.com/spews.htm

Related

• DDoS Attacks

Anti SpamCop

The SpamCop Blacklist isn't designed for blocking mail in a production environment, because it relies on the judgement of SpamCop users who are sometimes not very good at spam reporting - they even report their own ISP...

Spamex on Spamcop - www.spamex.com/news/2002.12.16.spamcop.cfm
Why the SpamCop blocking list is harmful - jhoward.fastmail.fm/spamcop.html
Problems with Spamcop - www.spamresource.com/2003/03/problems-with-spamcop.html
Spamcop is harmful - wiki.fastmail.fm/index.php/SpamcopIsHarmful

Related

• DDoS Attacks

Anti MAPS

The MAPS RBL is the original DNS blackhole list, and has attacted a lot of abuse from spammers.

The RBL Story - www.sunbelt-software.com/rbl_story.htm
Stop the MAPS conspiracy! - www.dotcomeon.com/
MAPS DUL is a bad idea - homepages.tesco.net./~J.deBoynePollard/FGA/maps-dul-is-wrong.html

Anti SpamAssassin

SpamAssassin is a server-based spam filtering application. If used without care it can cause false positives, blocking mail that is not actually spam, especially when content of email is used as a blocking method.

You HAD mail! - www.talkbiz.com/assassin.html#assassin
ISP Assassin - www.angelfire.com/space/netcensus/ispassassin.html

Anti Spamhaus

SBL going bad? - www.paulgraham.com/sblbad.html
The Destiny of Blacklists - www.paulgraham.com/spamhausblacklist.html
Irritated at Spamhaus - spamhuntress.com/2005/04/06/irritated-at-spamhaus/
US Internet “Free Speech” Tightly Controlled by Secret Group... - bolenreport.net/feature_articles/feature_article027.htm
SpamHaus — Irresponsible Net Citizens - blog.devost.net/2007/01/28/spamhaus-irresponsible-net-citizens/
Anonymous Group Takes Aim at Spamhaus - directmag.com/disciplines/email/anonymous_group_spamhaus_0401/

Anti AOL

AOL proposed using a trusted sender programme provided by Goodmail, which provoked some media coverage and a campaign against it.

Stop AOL's e-mail tax - civic.moveon.org/emailtax/ - see: www.dearaol.com/

Related

• Trusted Sender Programmes