CIPAFilter features

Anti-Spam - FAQs

Q1: How can I monitor the success of the Anti-Spam system?
Q2: What if I get a false positive?
Q3: Should I be worried about false positives?
Q4: How many e-mail domains can CIPAFilter process?
Q5: Are entries in the grey-listing database ever deleted?
Q6: Are users going to notice the delay process?
Q7: Can I have a secondary MX Record?
Q8: What Technical considerations relate to the Anti-Spam install?
Q9: Can CIPAFilter process outgoing mail?
Q10: How quickly may a mail server retry a message?
Q11: Why does CIPAFilter check the source IP address as well?
Q12: How long does it take to install the system?
Q13: Can I black-list an e-mail address?
Q14: Can I monitor and log which e-mails are blocked?

Question 1: How can I monitor the success of the Anti-Spam system?

A: On the web-page management interface, under the Statistics section, the system will provide statistics on e-mails received vs. messages actually delivered to the mail system. This provides a percentage indicating what % of all e-mail is being blocked by the system.

Question 2: What if I get a false positive?

A: In the rare instance you get a false positive, CIPAFilter allows you to white-list a domain-name. White-listed domains will completely by-pass the Anti-Spam system. Typically, only a few domain names will exist, including the local domain.

Question 3: Should I be worried about false positives?

A: The truth is that CIPAFilter's Anti-Spam system is much less aggressive than other systems, and has a goal of as few false positives as possible, if any. The only instance where CIPAFilter will not pass a legitimate message is if the sending mail server on the Internet does not retry the message.
This means that the sending mail server will also be unsuccessful in delivering mail to other "busy" mail servers, and most likely has issues with other Anti-Spam systems as well.

Nevertheless, CIPAFilter has modified the 4.5.71 SMTP "Please try again" message, to include a detailed description of why the message was returned, and that it was simply asked to retry. The person then has the option of contacting the postmaster account, which is white-listed by default. This way, in the rare instance of a false positive, the sending user will have a description of why the message came back and is provided with an alternate method to contact the destination domain.

Question 4: How many e-mail domains can CIPAFilter process?

A: CIPAFilter's e-mail processing system can process as many e-mail domains as you wish, as long as the hardware model will handle the load.

Question 5: Are entries in the grey-listing database ever deleted?

A: Yes. CIPAFilter purges the database of known IP's and recipients after 30 days. Unless a user e-mails regularly, the message might be delayed briefly again.

Question 6: Are users going to notice the delay process?

A: No. The delay process is typically transparent to users. Unless you know exactly when someone is suppose to send you an e-mail, and it is the first time they have e-mailed you, the delay should not be noticed. The function is simply between mail servers.

Question 7: Can I have a secondary MX Record?

A: No you cannot. The delay mechanism relies on a single MX record. Secondary records may retry and relay the Spam mail back to CIPAFilter. For a proper implementation, use only a single MX Record for each configured e-mail domain.

Question 8: What Technical considerations relate to the Anti-Spam install?

A: E-mail systems are becoming more complex, and rely on a proper configuration.

The DNS name of CIPAFilter needs to resolve to its IP address
The IP address needs to Reverse DNS to the correct host name
Any IP addresses on CIPAFilter may NOT Reverse to the domain name for which e-mail is being processed
Only one MX Record may exist for any given domain name
The mail server must permit e-mail received from CIPAFilter
CIPAFilter and the mail server may not have the same name

Question 9: Can CIPAFilter process outgoing mail?

A: Yes. CIPAFilter can be the outgoing SMTP gateway. It can virus scan and pornography filter outgoing mail. As long as the mail relay is configured for the associated IP address range, CIPAFilter will relay outgoing mail from a client machine, or mail server.

Question 10: How quickly may a mail server retry a message?

A: CIPAFilter requires at least a 10 minute delay before accepting a message for the first time. Mail servers that retry before 10 minutes are forced to retry again. This is another attempt to decrease Spam.

Question 11: Why does CIPAFilter check the source IP address as well?

A: “It forces the Spammers to use legitimate IP addresses and prevents them from changing source IP’s for each e-mail message making it very hard for them to bypass the greylisting process”

Question 12: How long does it take to install the system?

A: The Anti-Spam install is very easy and requires very basic configuration in most cases. Our technicians will work with you to ensure a proper installation

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Question 13: Can I black-list an e-mail address?

A: In the rare instance when user receives e-mail that is unwanted, simply delete the message or create a rule for automatic deletion. The goal of CIPAFilter is to eliminate as much management as possible while ensuring better results. This is a philosophy CIPAFilter will stick to. Another option is to firewall off SMTP traffic from the source mail server IP address, but these types of issues should simply not occur when using CIPAFilter's Anti-Spam system.

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Question 14: Can I monitor and log which e-mails are blocked?

A: There are so many e-mail and Spam attempts on a daily basis it would be impossible to log each e-mail and further more, search through the logs to identify an issue. Some logging is allowed through the command-line console and typically used by the support technicians to troubleshoot an issue.

The failure of legitimate e-mail messages is very uncommon and the technology is virtually bullet-proof. In the rare even that this happens simply contact a CIPAFilter support technician. Usually, any issues typically only appear shortly after an initial install and are usually indicative of improper mail server configuration an e-mail server domain that does not retry their messages.