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Spam filters changing again...

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clay

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Oct 21, 2009, 1:34:17 PM10/21/09
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Looks like ATT is mucking with their spam filters again.
More spam getting through but email from my bank (Wells Fargo) is
getting filtered as spam.
Time to turn off spam blocker until they get it sorted out.

[multiposted to alt.att]

Cal Tinson

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Oct 21, 2009, 2:23:25 PM10/21/09
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On 10/21/2009 1:34 PM eastern, clay wrote:

> Looks like ATT is mucking with their spam filters again.
> More spam getting through but email from my bank (Wells Fargo) is
> getting filtered as spam.
> Time to turn off spam blocker until they get it sorted out.

Not seeing an increase here - it's been level to down a bit recently.

clay

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Oct 21, 2009, 3:03:14 PM10/21/09
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It's probably related to the old postoffice.pacbell.net server I'm using.
The few bits of spam aren't a concern.
Just a heads up to check for false positives. I wouldn't have caught the
one from my bank except I logged in to flag a couple that were spam and
found it in the spam folder.

norm

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Oct 21, 2009, 5:31:17 PM10/21/09
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I am seeing spam in amounts not seen for a very long time getting
through the filters. Something is not right, someplace.

--
norm

NormanM

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Oct 22, 2009, 3:32:35 AM10/22/09
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> Cal Tinson wrote:

Blocking spam is a lot like blocking viruses. Spammers are constantly trying
to beat the filters; sometimes they succeed, for a while.

--
Norman
~Oh Lord, why have you come
~To Konnyu, with the Lion and the Drum

clay

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Oct 22, 2009, 10:29:03 AM10/22/09
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NormanM wrote:
> On Wed, 21 Oct 2009 17:31:17 -0400, norm wrote:
>
>> Cal Tinson wrote:
>
>>> On 10/21/2009 1:34 PM eastern, clay wrote:
>
>>>> Looks like ATT is mucking with their spam filters again.
>>>> More spam getting through but email from my bank (Wells Fargo) is
>>>> getting filtered as spam.
>>>> Time to turn off spam blocker until they get it sorted out.
>
>>> Not seeing an increase here - it's been level to down a bit recently.
>
>> I am seeing spam in amounts not seen for a very long time getting
>> through the filters. Something is not right, someplace.
>
> Blocking spam is a lot like blocking viruses. Spammers are constantly trying
> to beat the filters; sometimes they succeed, for a while.
>
...which explains the ones that get through. I get that.
It doesn't explain why bank emails, which got through for years, now get
flagged.
Wait. My bank also changed something in their headers to try and get
flagged. *g*
Anyway, no big deal. Just wanted to bring it up in case others were
missing legit emails and didn't know it.

NormanM

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Oct 22, 2009, 2:46:23 PM10/22/09
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On Thu, 22 Oct 2009 07:29:03 -0700, clay wrote:

> NormanM wrote:

>> On Wed, 21 Oct 2009 17:31:17 -0400, norm wrote:

>>> Cal Tinson wrote:

>>>> On 10/21/2009 1:34 PM eastern, clay wrote:

>>>>> Looks like ATT is mucking with their spam filters again.
>>>>> More spam getting through but email from my bank (Wells Fargo) is
>>>>> getting filtered as spam.
>>>>> Time to turn off spam blocker until they get it sorted out.

>>>> Not seeing an increase here - it's been level to down a bit recently.

>>> I am seeing spam in amounts not seen for a very long time getting
>>> through the filters. Something is not right, someplace.

>> Blocking spam is a lot like blocking viruses. Spammers are constantly trying
>> to beat the filters; sometimes they succeed, for a while.

> ...which explains the ones that get through. I get that.
> It doesn't explain why bank emails, which got through for years, now get
> flagged.
> Wait. My bank also changed something in their headers to try and get
> flagged. *g*

Actually, maybe yes, sort of. Spammers change, break through the filters.
The filter writers change, and stem the spam flood. Bank may change, or not;
either way, they may get caught by the rewritten spam filters.

Filtering spam is not an easy task; especially when you consider that you
want to avoid false positives as much as possible.

> Anyway, no big deal. Just wanted to bring it up in case others were
> missing legit emails and didn't know it.

It is never a good idea to blindly delete suspect spam. Always use a "Junk"
folder, and check it regularly.

clay

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Oct 22, 2009, 4:13:52 PM10/22/09
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NormanM wrote:
>...

>
> It is never a good idea to blindly delete suspect spam. Always use a "Junk"
> folder, and check it regularly.
>

The only options for filtering at the webmail server are:
A) Delete
B) Hold suspected spam in my MailGuard folder for a day or two.
C) Don't do nothin'

I've never watched to see how long a "day or two" is but I'm sure I
don't visit webmail that often.

All Junkmail Thunderbird flags goes directly to trash (as do "Sent" copies.)
Two less folders to monitor and clean out and with the big ol' flaming
icon TB puts on spam, not hard to spot.
The key is, don't blindly empty the trash... *g*

NormanM

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Oct 23, 2009, 2:34:48 AM10/23/09
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On Thu, 22 Oct 2009 13:13:52 -0700, clay wrote:

> NormanM wrote:

>>...

>> It is never a good idea to blindly delete suspect spam. Always use a "Junk"
>> folder, and check it regularly.

> The only options for filtering at the webmail server are:
> A) Delete
> B) Hold suspected spam in my MailGuard folder for a day or two.
> C) Don't do nothin'

I don't have those options. When I go to http://webauth.att.net/, I can
enter my email address (@pacbell.net) and password, but I get a warning:

| IMPORTANT!
| If you have upgraded to the att.net Powered by Yahoo
| home page go to http://www.att.net to sign-in,
| and remember to update your bookmarks.

Been that way ever since SBC bought AT&T.

However, I can log in at http://mail.yahoo.com/. Avoids the portal page (I
am not a big portal page fan), and goes straight to my email.

I have an option to trap "suspected spam" in a "Spam" folder, and to train
the filter. I can even reset the filter, and retrain. I can also configure
up to 500 disposable email addresses.

So I have no way to know just what AT&T is doing with their spam filers.

> I've never watched to see how long a "day or two" is but I'm sure I
> don't visit webmail that often.
>
> All Junkmail Thunderbird flags goes directly to trash (as do "Sent" copies.)
> Two less folders to monitor and clean out and with the big ol' flaming
> icon TB puts on spam, not hard to spot.
> The key is, don't blindly empty the trash... *g*

If that is where you hold your suspect email then that is the correct key.

clay

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Oct 23, 2009, 10:42:26 AM10/23/09
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NormanM wrote:
> On Thu, 22 Oct 2009 13:13:52 -0700, clay wrote:
>
>> NormanM wrote:
>
>>>...
>
>>> It is never a good idea to blindly delete suspect spam. Always use a "Junk"
>>> folder, and check it regularly.
>
>> The only options for filtering at the webmail server are:
>> A) Delete
>> B) Hold suspected spam in my MailGuard folder for a day or two.
>> C) Don't do nothin'
>
> I don't have those options. When I go to http://webauth.att.net/, I can
> enter my email address (@pacbell.net) and password, but I get a warning:

That's where I log in. Takes me to:
<http://webmail.att.net>
I got the warnings/upgrade threats for a while. I ignored them and they
went away. Don't see them any more.

>
> However, I can log in at http://mail.yahoo.com/. Avoids the portal page (I
> am not a big portal page fan), and goes straight to my email.

I've never been able to get mail.yahoo.com to work with my @pacbell.net
account. Probably because I ignored the upgrade warnings...

NormanM

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Oct 23, 2009, 1:07:01 PM10/23/09
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On Fri, 23 Oct 2009 07:42:26 -0700, clay wrote:

> I've never been able to get mail.yahoo.com to work with my @pacbell.net
> account. Probably because I ignored the upgrade warnings...

SBC pushed migration hard in 2002. I jumped in December. From reports of
other customers, they may finally be forcing migration. I can't say, for
certain.

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