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Spam Filters

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Overview

This interface allows you to configure the spam filter settings (powered by Apache SpamAssassin™) for your account. Spam filters identify and sort or delete unsolicited email, commonly known as spam. You can also use this interface to configure your whitelist and blacklist settings.

For more information, read Apache SpamAssassin's overview documentation.

 

 

Process New Emails and Mark them as Spam

Set this toggle to enabled to identify potential spam. Apache SpamAssassin examines every message for spam characteristics and assigns them a calculated spam score. This calculated spam score helps determine the likelihood that a message contains spam. The Spam Box and Auto-Delete features require that you enable Apache SpamAssassin first.

 

Spam Threshold score

If the system calculates a spam score for a message that meets or exceeds the Spam Threshold Score setting, the system marks the message as spam. A lower spam threshold score, such as a one, is aggressive and labels many messages as spam, including messages that may not be spam. However, a higher value, such as a ten, is passive and only labels messages that are obviously spam.

To set the value for the Spam Threshold Score setting, perform the following steps:

Click Spam Threshold Score link in the interface. The system directs you to the Adjust Spam Threshold Score interface.

Select the desired Spam Threshold Score from the menu.

Clock Update Scoring Options to save your changes.

 

Move New Spam to a Separate Folder (Spam Box)

Set this toggle to enabled to configure the Exim service to create a spam folder the next time that you receive spam mail. Spam Box sends any message with a calculated spam score that exceeds the Spam Threshold Score to this folder. This feature preserves email that Apache SpamAssassin may mistakenly classify as spam mail.

 

Empty the Spam Box folder

To empty the spam folder or remove selected messages, click Configure Spam Box Settings. The system directs you to the Spam Box interface with the following options:

Enable the Spam Box is enabled. toggle in this interface to activate Spam Box if you did not do so in the Spam Filters interface.

Click Empty the Spam Box folder for "username" to delete all messages in the Spam Box for the default account, where username represents the default account's name.

Click Empty all Spam Box folders to delete all messages in the Spam Box folder for every email address on this account, including the default account. 

Important:

This option deletes the Spam Box folder contents for all email addresses on the account.

Click Manage Disk Usage to select which messages you want to remove.

 

POP3 client users

If you check your mail through a POP3 client, access and empty your Spam Box with the youraddress@example.com/spam username and your email account password. If you do not delete messages in the Spam Box frequently, spam may accumulate and cause you to reach your email account quota.

Notes:

You cannot use this method to access other folders on your account. Some webmail clients may require additional steps. 

If you are unsure whether you use POP3 or IMAP to receive mail, search for this information in your email application's Preferences interface.

 

Automatically Delete New Spam (Auto-Delete)

Set this toggle to enabled to automatically delete messages that meet or exceed the Auto-Delete Threshold Score.

Important:

Make certain that you properly configure the Auto-Delete Threshold Score. Auto-Delete permanently deletes all messages with a calculated spam score that meets or exceeds the Auto-Delete Threshold Score. This could include non-spam messages, which would cause you to lose those messages.

 

Configure Auto-Delete Settings

Click Configure Auto-Delete Settings to configure the Auto-Delete Threshold Score. The system directs you to the Auto-Delete interface with the following options:

  • Enable the Spam Auto-Delete is enabled. toggle in this interface to activate Auto-Delete if you did not do so in the Spam Filter interface.
  • Select the desired Auto-Delete Threshold Score value. Click Update Auto-Delete Score to save your changes.

 

 

Additional Configurations (for Advanced Users)

This section allows you to customize the whitelist, blacklist, and individual test scores.

Important:

Only advanced users should configure these settings.

Click Show Additional Configurations to display the additional configuration options.

 

Whitelist (Emails Always Allowed)

This section displays the account's current number of whitelisted items. Whitelists allow you to receive email from an email address that Apache SpamAssassin falsely marks as spam.

Click Edit Spam Whitelist Settings to configure the Spam Filters whitelist settings. The system directs you to the Whitelist interface.

Note:

When you add addresses to the whitelist, use * as a wildcard to represent multiple characters and ? to represent a single-character wildcard. The following examples demonstrate how to properly use wildcards in the whitelist:

  • user@example.com — Whitelists a single email address.
  • *@example.com — Whitelists all of the addresses at example.com.
  • ?ser@example.com — Whitelists a single character in an address at example.com (for example, user@example.com, but not Auser@example.com).

To add an email address to the whitelist, perform the following steps:

  1. Click Add A New "whitelist_from" Item to add an email address.
  2. Enter the email address in the whitelist_from text box.
    • Click the cancel icon (x.png) to remove a whitelist_from entry.
  3. Click Update Whitelist (whitelist_from) to save your changes.

 

Blacklist (Emails Never Allowed)

This section displays the account's current number of blacklisted items. Blacklists allow you to mark emails that Apache SpamAssassin falsely marks as non-spam as spam mail.

Click Edit Spam Blacklist Settings to configure the Spam Filters blacklist settings. The system directs you to the Blacklist interface.

Note:

When you add addresses to the blacklist, use * as a wildcard to represent multiple characters and ? to represent a single-character wildcard. The following examples demonstrate how to properly use wildcards in the blacklist:

  • user@example.com — Blacklist a single email address.
  • *@example.com — Blacklist all of the addresses at example.com.
  • ?ser@example.com — Blacklist a single character in an address at example.com (for example, user@example.com, but not Auser@example.com).

To add an email address to the blacklist, perform the following steps:

  1. Click Add A New "blacklist_from" Item to add an email address.
  2. Enter the email address in the black _from text box.
    • Click the cancel icon (x.png) to remove a whitelist_from entry.
  3. Click Update Blacklist (blacklist_from) to save your changes.

  

Calculated Spam Score Settings

Warning:

We strongly recommend that only advanced users edit the spam testing scores. Improper configurations will create unintended consequences.

Click Configure Calculated Spam Score to configure individual test scores. 

Apache SpamAssassin uses hundreds of tests, and you can assign scores to individual tests to configure Apache SpamAssassin for your server. Use this interface to modify the individual test scores that Apache SpamAssassin uses to mark a message as spam. You can increase the score of a test that incorrectly allows spam messages to pass through. Conversely, you can disable or reduce the score of a test that falsely marks messages as spam. For example, disable tests that mark bankruptcy emails as spam for a user who is a bankruptcy lawyer.

To update the score of an individual test, perform the following steps:

  1. Click Add A New "scores" Item to enter a new customized test score.
  2. Select a test from the scores menu.

  3. Enter a new value in the text box that contains up to three decimal places.

    Note:

    Set the score value to 0 to disable a test.

  4. Click Update Scoring Options to save your changes.

Note:

To review the default scores, run the following command at the command line:

grep -R score /var/lib/spamassassin/* | less
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