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A | B | C | D | E | F | G | H | I | J | K | L | M | N | O | P | Q | R | S | T | U | V | W | X | Y | Z
A
Accreditation-based systems: Third-party whitelist
programs, such as Bonded Sender from IronPort or Trusted Sender
from Habeas, that aim to convince ISPs that those using the systems
are legitimate mailers who should never be blocked.
Authentication: The practice by ISPs and other
mail gateway administrators to establish the true identity of the
sender. Examples of proposed authentication standards include DomainKeys
(Yahoo), SPF (PO Box, AOL), Caller ID for email or Sender ID (Microsoft)
and dot.mail.
B
Blacklist, public: A list of IP addresses believed
to send spam. Created and held by third parties; sometimes used
by ISPs as another filtering mechanism to block email delivery.
Blacklist, private: A list of IP addresses believed
to send spam, compiled by an ISP based on user complaints, mail
sent to spam trap addresses and unknown user rates. Used to block
email delivery.
Bounce: A message sent by a receiving system
that “bounces back” to the originating server to alert
the sender of the non-delivery.
Bulk mail folder: Folder within email clients
to which questionable email is often directed. Also referred to
as “Junk” or “Spam” folders in some email
clients.
Blackhole: Term describing what happens to email
that is blocked without a bounce response to the sender.
C
Caller ID for Email: Proposed way to help block
spam and spoofing attacks by asking the IP address sending email
whether the domain it represents is legitimate. Compares the “From” address
and content to the IP address authorized to send the email. Proposed
by Microsoft.
CAN-SPAM: Federal legislation governing unsolicited
commercial email that went into effect on January 1, 2004. This
law does not prohibit unsolicited commercial email, but it does
regulate how it must be sent. Lawmakers intended to protect the
end user and to make prosecution of spammers easier. The acronym
stands for “Controlling the Assault of Non-Solicited Pornography
and Marketing.”
Challenge Response: Method of approving senders
to specific email addresses that asks the email sender to answer
a question proving he is a real person and not a spam machine attempting
to send email. Primarily used by Earthlink and selected client-side
filters.
Commercial email: Marketing or sales oriented
email that is sent in bulk.
Confirmed opt-in: A process in which a subscriber
opts in to your newsletter and then receives an email message confirming
their subscription and offering them the option to immediately
unsubscribe if the subscription was in any way a mistake. Unlike
double opt-in, the receiver does not have to take any action in
order to be added to the list.
Content filters: Software filters that block
email based on words, phrases or header information within the
email itself. Goal is to identify and filter to the Bulk or Junk
mail folders any email that is likely to be spam.
D
Delivery monitoring: A process, usually using
third-party tools and techniques, to measure true delivery rates
by campaign and ISP. Also tracks amount and type of email tagged
and/or blocked by server and client-side filters.
Dictionary attack: Type of spam program that
bombards a mail server with millions of alphabetically-generated
email addresses in the hope that some addresses will be guessed
correctly.
Domain: Internet addresses made up of words that
correspond to the Internet Protocol (IP) numbers computers use
to find each other. Domains always have two or more parts, separated
by “dots.”
DomainKeys: Email-authentication system proposed
by Yahoo! that requires each message to be “signed” cryptographically.
This would make messages impossible to spoof and prove that they
came from the purported sending domain.
Double opt-in: The process that double-checks
the desire to be included on an email list after a primary registration.
Typically done via an email that requires a non-automated response
(proof that a live person is at the other end of the email address)
in order for the email address to be added to the list. Also called
verified opt-in.
DNS: Domain Name System translates domain names
into an IP address to find the owner’s site.
E
Email delivery rates: The percentage of email
that gets delivered as intended; compiled from seedlist-based monitoring
services and SMTP log files.
ECOA: Email Change of Address. Process that provides
updated email addresses for data files based on consumer-provided,
permission-based data.
Email append: Process that adds email addresses
to postal files by merging files to match the postal address against
email information in other files.
ESP: An Email Solutions Provider is a company
that sends and manages email campaigns for companies that use email
to communicate with customers.
F
False negative: When spam-filtering devices fail
to detect spam and allow it to be delivered.
False positive: When spam-filtering devices inaccurately
identify legitimate email as spam.
G
Graylisting: Process of routing email to a bulk
folder if it is borderline spam in eyes of ISPs. Next step is blacklisting,
which blocks the email altogether.
H
Harvesting: Scanning the internet to identify
email addresses and uses them to create lists for spamming.
Header: The first part of an email message, which
contains controlling data and metadata such as the subject, origin
and destination email addresses, the path an email takes, and its
priority. May be used to filter, track spammers or uncover information
about delivery rates.
I
IP addresses: The numeric identification number
that refers to a specific machine on the internet.
Internet Service Provider (ISP): Company that
provides access to the internet through connectivity services.
Examples include AOL, Comcast, Earthlink and Verizon.
L
List hygiene: Process of cleaning email files
to ensure all addresses are accurate and deliverable.
M
Machine-learning filters: Filters run by machines
that determine whether to block email based on algorithms that
identify likely spam messages.
O
Open relay: SMTP email server that allows the
third-party relay of email messages through the SMTP “port” on
a server (port 25). While this feature of SMTP servers has legitimate
uses, spammers have learned how to locate unprotected servers and
use them to send spam.
Open proxy: Software that
exists on a server that allows the third-party relay of email messages
through ports other than port 25.
Opt-in: Process of agreeing to receive email
from a business source. Confirmed opt-in refers to a double-check
procedure in which a decision to be included on a mailing list
is confirmed.
Opt-out: Process of declining to receive email
from a business source or unsubscribing if the recipient is already
on a mailing list.
P
Phishing: (Pronounced ‘fishing’)
A replica of a legitimate web page that tries to trick users into
submitting personal or financial information or passwords.
Postmaster: The person who manages mail servers
at an organization. Usually the one to contact at a particular
server/site to get help or information or to log complaints.
R
Rich media: A web technology creating an interactive
atmosphere for viewers online through things such as streaming
video and audio files
S
Seed list: A list of email addresses that should
be included in every email event to monitor delivery across email
platforms. Can be done in house or through a third-party vendor.
SPF: Email authentication process used by AOL
(on outbound mail) that prevents domain forgery.
SMTP: Simple Mail Transfer Protocol, a server-to-server
protocol used to transfer email between computers.
SMTP log file: A file showing all conversations
back and forth between servers during the email send-and-receive
process. Used to uncover problems with various deliverability factors
such as unknown user rates.
Spam: Widely-used slang reference to unsolicited
commercial email messages. Named after the popular Monty Python “Spam” sketch
and song.
Spam filter: Systems that watch for spam and
block it before it can hit the inbox. Spam filters can be complaint
or content based.
Spam-trap address: An email address that is set
up specifically to catch people who are harvesting addresses or
using directory attacks to send unsolicited email. Used by Brightmail,
ISPs and many in the anti-spam community.
Spoofing: Forged email addresses that hide the
origin of a spam or virus message. Used to trick people into opening
an email in the belief that it has come from a legitimate source.
Suppression list: A list of email addresses that
should not be mailed to any longer (kept by a single organization).
Usually owners of the addresses on the list have specifically requested
inclusion. Required by CAN-SPAM.
U
Unknown User: Bounce error code generated by
an ISP when an email address is not registered in its system.
V
Verified opt-in: The process of verifying opt-in
by requiring that the recipient perform an action before being
added to the list. More commonly known as double opt-in.
W
Whitelist: A list of trusted IP addresses and domains
that allows all mail from these addresses to be delivered, bypassing
spam filters. |
