1. Release 3.4.0
Managed Email Filtering Service
Release Notice
Release Date: 30th April 2007
We are pleased to announce the availability of Release 3.4.0 of the Managed Email Filtering
Service which will be rolled out over the network commencing 2nd May 2007. This release
adds Anti-Spam Allow/ Deny features, as well as a number of other enhancements and
fixes.
For further details please contact your service re-seller.
New Features
Allow/ Deny List Support
The Filtering Service is being updated to support a dedicated Allow/ Deny list that works
directly with the anti-spam system, enabling both system administrators and end-users to
implement lists of allowed and blocked senders and domains.
Although the service already offers such a feature via the rules system, this new
enhancement is specifically built around the anti-spam system to offer a softer approach
which kicks in after the Content Rules. The Content Rules system remains in place to
provide a hard block and allow feature that always prioritises the Administrator’s policies.
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2. Administrative Level
The new Allow and Deny lists can be maintained at the account, domain/ group and end-
user levels, with each list being inherited. Inheritance means that an end-user will inherit
domain/ group lists, and domain/ group lists will inherit account level lists.
Each list can contain fully qualified email addresses, domains or partial wild card
addresses.
The Allow/ Deny list feature is provided via a new management portal page, which allows
manual entry of items in the list or mass entry from such sources as a spreadsheet. The
same management approach is provided at the account, domain/ group and end-user level.
The Spam Log management page has been enhanced so that when a message is released it
is possible to automatically request that the sender address or sender domain is
automatically added to the Allow list. If the .message is deleted, similar information can be
automatically added to the Deny list.
End-Users and the Spam Digest
Where the existing Spam Digest feature is enabled for a user, the user now has the ability
to automatically add senders and domains to the user’s personal Allow list, when a message
is released. If the user has a personal login to the end-user portal, it is also possible to
manage the Allow/ Deny lists directly – adding and removing entries via the page illustrated
above.
The System Administrator can choose to enable/ disable this particular feature for the end-
user via the ISP and End-User Management page in the main console.
The Daily Spam Digest feature is also upgraded to enable the end-user to request that a
message sender or domain is added to the allow list when the message is released via the
spam digest.
Questions
Q. What will happen to existing block and allow lists that have been set up via the
rules system
A. These will continue to operate unchanged. The addition of an allow or deny entry via the
as before, and where a system administrator requires the ability to put in place a hard
allow or block rule then this is still the preferred mechanism to use.
Q. Who has priority when administrator lists conflict with user lists?
A. The new Allow/ Deny User lists have been designed to act as a soft enforcement
mechanism. This means that end-user lists take priority over domain/ group lists, and
domain/ group lists take priority over account lists. Where an account or domain
administrator needs to put in place a hard block or allow, the rules system can be continue
to be used to facilitate this, which is evaluated in favour of the administrator.
Q. Will my End Users see this feature when the release is rolled out?
A. No - by default the feature will not be enabled for existing end-users on the system. The
end-user management portal page and spam digest feature however can be enabled by the
system administrator via a permission setting in the ISP and End-User permissions page.
Other Key Enhancements/ Fixes
• The underlying adaptive pipeline technology has been enhanced to provide increased
protection against mail surges caused by either inbound (Distributed) Denial of
Service attacks or mass high volume mass mail shots. Customers who commonly
send out mail shots of greater than 10,000 messages per shot are advised to contact
us in order that the domain settings can be reviewed.
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3. • Support for new End-User permission levels has been added to provide finer
granularity on the user’s ability to enable/ disable spam digest, filter pre-sets and
password modification features in the end-user system.
• A new Image Spam detection algorithm will be applied to our core L1 engine which
will further enhance the spam detection levels. This algorithm is expected to take
around 3 to 4 weeks to reach its maximum potential, whilst it gathers and evaluates
new image spam finger-prints.
• New Shibboleth permission levels have been added to enable the additional end-user
permission levels to be utilised via the Shibboleth single sign-on system.
• Account administrators can now modify domain override flags if they edit account
rules via the group/rules page rather than the account/rules page. Previously this
could only be done by creating a domain/ group level administrator. [#1368]
• Hooks have been incorporated into the Email Filtering service in preparation for the
release of the Business Continuity Service later this quarter.
Key Fixes
The following customer reported issues have been fixed in Release 3.4
• A problem has been resolved in the feature that disables the addition of text
signatures to messages containing S/MIME digital signatures, which would continue
to add the signature to the message. [#280]
Rollout Plan
The rollout of Release 3.4.0 will take place from the 2nd May 2007 onwards. No system
outages will be experienced during this time. No changes to the operation of any existing
policies and configurations will be applied. An announcement will be placed on the Cluster
Notification pane informing customers of the exact date of the rollout nearer the time.
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