Re: Can reputable domains stop outgoing spam?

David MacQuigg wrote:

> > this doesn't happen without impairing the ability of the mail system 
> > to carry legitimate mail.
> Has AOL suffered any impairment? 
Considerably, yes. AOL's reliance at the router layer on the MAPS-DUL 
has resulted in blocked mail from legitimate senders using recently 
allocated IP addresses. AOL users accidentally clicking on the "this is 
spam" button -- and then trying to figure out why they aren't getting 
their bank statements -- has created a whole new line of business for 
help desks. If you are a small business and you want to be sure your 
customers get your mail, it's vital that you put yourself onto AOL's 
white lists; but the volume of mail coming back on AOL's feedback loops 
has been known to overwhelm small servers; when the legitimate business 
finds itself unable to deal with the FBL volume they get removed from 
the whitelist or blocked entirely. AOL's gentle (but real) threat to 
downgrade or block mail from ISPs that don't implement anti-zombie 
measures have sent some ISPs scrambling to implement port 25 blocking 
across the board, resulting in legitimate senders suddenly and without 
warning being unable to send E-mail anywhere.
These are all issues I discussed with live users at MAAWG last week. 
Plenty more where that comes from.
All of these problems do get resolved -- AOL is really good about 
working with legitimate senders to get the mail through -- but managing 
the "impairment" is a big job.
<csg>