The title of this post is part of the slogan for the DSPAM content based SPAM filter, which is a component of the arsenal of chained-together tools which my business uses on its servers to combat unsolicited email. DSPAM is extremely accurate, if setup and ‘trained’ correctly.

This post is really about another component of zootzone.com’s anti-spam tool-kit, an SMTP server called qpsmtpd. One word describes its effectiveness: AWESOME. We block thousands of suspicious SMTP connections a day, before the unwanted messages are even queued to disk! That being said, the mail servers on our infrastructure are now running under a vastly reduced load, given the reduced volume of SPAM to process prior to delivery to users’ mailboxes.

What is so powerful about qpsmtpd, is that one can write plugins which intercept the SMTP communication at various stages, from the initial connect, right through to the DATA submission phase. An example would be the blocking of connections from dial-up, or DSL connected computers, which are inadvertently compromised SPAM zombies, or people sending SPAM to earn extra money. If you’re a system administrator, or ISP decision-maker, it is in your best interest to implement this incredibly powerful SMTP server.