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Our Policy on Unsolicited Commercial Email (Spam)

HEY! I'm not a spammer! Why was I referred to this page?

Unsolicited Comercial Email, Spam, or tresspassing. Call it what you will, the tide of UCE on our shores has been rising for some time, and it has grown to be a potential tsunami, flooding our already over-burdened system, and otherwise taxing our resources. The time has come (is long overdue) for us to take action.

We have decided to start using two services provided by MAPS: the RBL; and, on an experimental basis, the DUL. Each of these facilities attempts to block mail from a particular type of machine that spammers use to disguise their identity.

The RBL refuses mail from an "open-relay," a particularly gullible server configuration that believes (or doesn't care about) everything it's told, and is very accomodating about forwarding mail from the outside addressed to machines other than itself. Spammers use these machines to disguise their real originating server.

Because of the advent of systems like the RBL, spammers have begun to change their software to speak SMTP directly, connecting to each server with users they intend to spam. Since many spammers are using dynamic, dial-up internet connections, this poses a problem to those of us trying to limit the damage they can inflict. One possible solution is the Dial-up Users List. It contains a list of adresses of such connections at many ISPs. While this information is far from complete, it's a first step in determining whether a piece of mail should be delivered.

Unfortunately, each of these mechanisms is far from perfect, and each has the potential of bouncing mail from a valid correspondant. But in the vast majority of cases these users can channel their mail through proper channels to ensure proper delivery.

Hey! I'm not a spammer! Why was I referred to this page?

First of all, let me make two things clear:

1. Nobody is accusing you of being a spammer.
2. We have not singled you out (for any reason).

You have been referred here either because:

1. Your mail server is believed to be an open-relay,
2. Your mail server is on a dial-up connection, or
3. Your mail client connected to our server in error.

If your mail server is believed to be an open-relay, please read this page to find out what to do about it.

Otherwise, we recommend reading this page for more information.

As always, if you have any questions we can be reached via email <gripe AT slackers.net>