Bottom Line:
NO ONE should use an AOL email address for business purposes. Not
ever. If they want to keep AOL, they should get a free email address
from Yahoo or HotMail and use that for their business correspondence
(and critical things like their MOPO mail).
-- JR
----- Original Message -----
From: "David Kusumoto" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>
To: <MoPo-L@LISTSERV.AMERICAN.EDU>
Sent: Wednesday, May 03, 2006 10:49
Subject: [MOPO] WSJ: AOL, Verizon blocking legitimate mail
> It doesn't get anymore official than this to demonstrate how e-mails
to
> users of AOL, Verizon or Yahoo are occasionally going into a black
hole . .
> . In this morning's WSJ:
>
> -koose.
>
> = = = = = = = = = =
>
> WALL STREET JOURNAL
> May 3, 2006; Page D1
> SPAM FILTERS GONE WILD
> Spate of Incidents at Verizon, AOL Point to Growing Problem
> Of Blocking Legitimate Email
> By JESSICA E. VASCELLARO
>
> Internet companies are taking more aggressive steps to stop the flow
of
> unwanted email. In a significant number of cases, though, consumers
complain
> that the efforts increasingly are blocking the good along with the
bad.
>
> ** Possibly millions of AOL members were temporarily unable to
receive some
> mail from Google Inc.'s Gmail users last week after AOL held up
messages
> from some new Gmail servers over concerns it might be spam.
>
> ** An AOL software update recently resulted in a stoppage of mail
that
> mentioned at least 60 Internet addresses. An update of Verizon
Communication
> Inc.'s spam filters recently sparked widespread complaints from
consumers
> who were unable to receive and send messages.
>
> The companies blamed the problems on software glitches or
communication
> failures and often fixed them within hours. Tight precautions are
necessary,
> the companies say, since spam can threaten online security and
safety -- a
> more serious problem than the nuisance of a few missed messages.
>
> ** But others say the incidents are a troubling sign that new
antispam
> measures may be going too far, contributing to everything from lost
> real-estate deals and blocked banking transactions to bruised
relationships
> caused by unreturned emails that never got through to friends in the
first
> place.
>
> Recently, Mark Fleischer, a 24-year-old commercial real-estate
broker in
> Tampa, Fla., was waiting for his client's final approval to go ahead
and bid
> on a $175,000 condo after emailing him a list of the prices for
comparable
> properties.
>
> But Yahoo Inc. blocked his client's response telling him to go ahead
with
> the deal, and Mr. Fleischer lost the sale. Yahoo says in such cases
it aims
> to help the sender fix the problem by sending him a rejection
message with
> informational links.
>
> As much as 20% of legitimate bulk commercial email -- which includes
mail
> users sign up to receive as well as online statements and
receipts -- gets
> caught in spam filters, according to Ferris Research, a San
Francisco-based
> market researcher.
>
> The best filters, however, make such mistakes for email between
> acquaintances only about once a month, according to Ferris.
>
> Most state-of-the art filters now employ filtering techniques that
typically
> involve examining the language in the email (does it include
combinations of
> words often found in spam but not legitimate email?), the mail
server
> sending the email (it is a computer that appears to be affected by a
virus?)
> and past messages from the sender (has it sent spam before?).
>
> They also are asking their customers to help.
>
> ** AOL, a unit of Time Warner Inc., stores messages its users report
as spam
> in a database it analyzes for patterns.
>
> Yahoo continually adjusts its technology based on its members' use
of a
> "This is spam/Not spam" buttons.
>
> The steps are generating victories in the war on spam. The number
of spam
> messages the average consumer receives annually fell 17% to 3,253 in
2005
> from 2003, according to Jupiter Research, and is expected to plummet
to
> 1,640 by 2010.
>
> ** AOL says its members report that the amount of spam in their
in-boxes has
> fallen by more than 75% since the fall of 2003.
>
> But some consumers are complaining about the unintended
consequences.
>
> The latest Verizon hitch left Lauren Weinstein, a computer
consultant from
> Woodland Hills, Calif., unable to help a friend fix his computer
over email
> when the message, along with messages to roughly four more friends
and
> colleagues whose Verizon accounts he subsequently tested, got
blocked.
>
> "I started seeing rejection messages coming back immediately from
Verizon,"
> he says. Mr. Weinstein requested an investigation online. Verizon
says it
> acted to fix the glitch and had email flowing normally within 48
hours.
>
> Samantha McManus, business-strategy manager for the
> technology-care-and-safety group at Microsoft Corp., says the risk
of
> regular email getting rejected has risen as spam filtering has
improved
> beyond catching only obvious junk mail.
>
> "We constantly have to make a decision about how aggressive we want
to be,"
> she says.
>
> The dilemma has prompted some companies to push spam-fighting
techniques
> designed to more accurately distinguished between wanted and
unwanted email.
>
> Over the past couple of years, Microsoft has been trying to prevent
spam to
> its Hotmail users through a program called Sender ID that allows
Microsoft
> to verify that an email is coming from the domain it claims it is
from.
>
> Companies become known as "Sender ID compliant" by publishing a list
of IP
> addresses authorized to send mail under their domains.
>
> Last month, Microsoft reported that when looking at emails that pass
a
> Sender ID check versus a sample of incoming "good" e-mail, there was
up to
> 80% reduction in the level of mail wrongly classified as spam.
Microsoft
> reports that more than 3 million domains are sending Sender ID
compliant
> mail world-wide.
>
> Yahoo -- the leading email site with more than 54 million unique
monthly
> visitors, according to Nielsen/NetRatings -- has been pushing a
similar
> standard called DomainKeys that generates a digital signature in the
header
> of an email message that Yahoo checks against published registry
information
> to verify the sender's identity.
>
> Such authentication techniques are gaining steam as the industry
grapples
> with other ways to ensure consumers see the emails they want to see.
>
> ** AOL will soon partner with authentication service Goodmail
Systems Inc.
> to allow some companies to pay fractions of a cent per email for
their
> emails to skip its spam filters altogether.
>
> Yahoo has announced that it will begin testing the service for
transactional
> emails, such as electronic banking statements. To sign up for the
service,
> companies must meet qualification criteria such as ensuring they
only send
> messages to those who request them or contacts with whom they have
an
> existing business relationship.
>
> ** AOL says the program will be a boon to consumers by helping them
receive
> trusted email.
>
> ** But the program has prompted a host of complaints from consumer
advocacy
> groups who say it is moving to a system of tiered email delivery
that favors
> senders who can afford to pay to reach consumers.
>
> ** And while such programs will help consumers identify the
legitimate
> emails from the fakes, it is not a substitute for spam prevention
nor does
> it address complaints that spam filtering is often a blunt
instrument.
>
> ** AOL user K.C. Eynatten of Houston crossed wires with a business
> acquaintance last month when AOL appeared to be blocking her
contact's
> incoming messages as spam. She detected the glitch after a missed
> appointment.
>
> ** "I don't want to change my email address but this is just so
incredibly
> frustrating," says the 54-year-old head of an arts foundation, whose
> daughter recently stopped sending her mail from her Gmail account
after it
> was repeatedly blocked as junk.
>
> There are several measures consumers can take if they suspect their
emails
> are getting caught in a spam trap. Adding an address to your online
address
> book will often ensure that emails from that sender are delivered to
you.
>
> ** AOL lets members tune their spam filters to one of four different
> settings.
>
> ** Senders suspecting their emails haven't been received should try
sending
> (or forwarding) the message again.
>
> ** They can also request to be added to a "white list" of approved
senders,
> which may require them to disclose their email address and server
addresses.
>
> Visit the MoPo Mailing List Web Site at www.filmfan.com
>
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