The SpamHaus project, the non-profit making anti-spam organisation, has
asked the internet standards body ICANN to grant its application to create a
".mail" top level internet domain (TLD) to create a 'trusted sender'
system for email. The domain name would effectively act as a 'reputation service' assuring recipients that the mail sender has agreed to abide by anti-spam mailing practices.
The system is similar to Microsoft's recently announced caller-ID scheme. It requires would-be participants to pay an annual fee of approximately $2,000 per year to register. While this solution would produce the ultimate 'white list' of trusted
email addresses, some companies are questioning whether it has a future from a technical and political standpoint.
Steve Ashmore, senior technology
consultant at messaging specialist Mirapoint says the approach is nothing new. "'White lists' work and have been used in varying degrees as a defence
against spam for many years," he says, "and having an Internet
standards based association such as ICANN administer such a scheme is
preferable from any vendor led proposition such as Microsoft's. The proposal is, however, fraught with controversial issues, including
discrimination. Adhering to a new standard requires time, money and IT
expertise. Not a problem for large ISPs and enterprises, but a strain
on smaller companies. If such a system was to become widespread, SMEs and individuals may have no choice but to comply or go without authenticated email, ultimately creating a society of email 'haves' and 'have nots'."
"The other major concern is the compliancy gap that clearly exists
between SpamHaus and the legislative authorities. It appears that
companies adhering to the US-inspired CANSPAM Act would not actually
qualify for the reputation service proposed by SpamHaus. SpamHaus's
hard line solution will undoubtedly lead to accusations that its
approach is 'throwing the baby out with the bathwater' in attempt to
make headway against the problem."
29-Mar-2004
