Hotmail Tools Up Against Spam

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Hotmail, the world’s biggest email and spam attracting service, has taken further steps to stamp out C*!k enlargements, U.N.I.V.E.R.S.I.T.Y.D.E.G.R.E.E.S., V!agr@ Dea!s, M’ortgageQuotes and the rest of the cr@p that floods our accounts everyday.

Beginning immediately, Microsoft has implemented two new programmes: “MSN Postmaster” and “Smart Network Data Services”. The former is an umbrella scheme for the latter and offers information and tools to address a range of issues including identifying junk mail, separating the delivery of legitimate bulk mailings, streamlining the procedure for reporting email abuse and upgrading the troubleshooter.

Inside Postmaster is a preview release of Smart Network Data Services. This is a tool for ISPs, allowing them to see how many emails are being sent from its IP space to hotmail and what percentage are being marked as spam on arrival (via MSN or users). The theory is based around that old chestnut of stopping a problem at its source and I have to say it certainly makes sense on paper.

Now personally speaking, I have been monitoring my hotmail account closely over the last few days to see whether these new tools were doing a decent job and consequently would be worth commenting on. As you can see, the story is here so something must be working.

I’ve had the same hotmail account for nine years, so the bulk mail it attracts has become something of a joke and up until two weeks ago there were never less than 40 to 60 emails in junk at any one time. At the current moment, I have only 10.

Of course - just like the virus developers - I expect spammers to come up with new methods to get around MSN Postmaster and its Smart Network Data Services but, for now, I’m enjoying the benefits.

Link:
MSN Postmaster

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