Jump to content

Host Closes Account (Falsely Accused of Spamming)


Ashocka

Recommended Posts

A domain I look after (jazzalburywodonga.com) has been shut down after I reported spam coming through it. Here's what the host says;

Hello Geoff,

The account has been suspended for spamming..

Please see attached as this nearly got the whole

server blacklisted...

Thank you,

Andrew

Admin

www.ozehosts.com

Here is the attached email

From: "Geoff Deering" <1081953545[at]reports.spamcop.net>

To: <abuse[at]gnax.net>

Subject: [spamCop (216.180.225.138) id:1081953545]Search engine traffic

Date: Friday, June 25, 2004 3:37 PM

[ SpamCop V1.350  ]

This message is brief for your comfort.  Please use links below for details.

Email from 216.180.225.138 / Sat, 26 Jun 2004 10:10:02 +1000

http://www.spamcop.net/w3m?i=z1081953545zc...1d9973b74284b8z

[ Offending message ]

Return-Path: <melville[at]t-online.de>

Delivered-To: x

Received: (qmail 32175 invoked from network); 25 Jun 2004 14:15:53 -0000

Received: from unknown (192.168.1.101)

  by blade2.cesmail.net with QMQP; 25 Jun 2004 14:15:53 -0000

Received: from mail.acslink.net.au (203.11.105.126)

  by mailgate.cesmail.net with SMTP; 25 Jun 2004 14:15:52 -0000

Received: from amavis by mail.acslink.net.au with scanned-ok (Exim 3.36 #1 (Debian))

id 1Be0lf-0006hS-00

for <x>; Sat, 26 Jun 2004 10:10:03 +1000

Received: from tahoe.dnsrouter.com ([216.180.225.138])

by mail.acslink.net.au with esmtp (Exim 3.36 #1 (Debian))

id 1Be0le-0006gz-00

for <x>; Sat, 26 Jun 2004 10:10:02 +1000

Received: from [217.129.240.127] (helo=217.129.240.127)

by tahoe.dnsrouter.com with smtp (Exim 4.34)

id 1BdrUW-0002eZ-Ki

for x; Fri, 25 Jun 2004 10:15:51 -0400

From: Andrea Davis <melville[at]t-online.de>

To: x

Subject: Search engine traffic

Date: Fri, 25 Jun 2004 14:04:47 +0000

MIME-Version: 1.0

Content-Type: multipart/related;

    type="multipart/alternative";

    boundary="----=_NextPart_000_0000_28DCC10D.9B8EC6C9"

X-Priority: 3

X-MSMail-Priority: Normal

X-Mailer: Microsoft Outlook Express 6.00.2600.0000

X-MimeOLE: Produced By Microsoft MimeOLE V6.00.2600.0000

X-AntiAbuse: This header was added to track abuse, please include it with any abuse report

X-AntiAbuse: Primary Hostname - tahoe.dnsrouter.com

X-AntiAbuse: Original Domain - jazzalburywodonga.com

X-AntiAbuse: Originator/Caller UID/GID - [47 12] / [47 12]

X-AntiAbuse: Sender Address Domain - t-online.de

X-Source:

X-Source-Args:

X-Source-Dir:

Message-Id: <E1Be_________z-00[at]mail.acslink.net.au>

X-Virus-Scanned: by AMaViS perl-11

X-spam-Checker-Version: SpamAssassin 2.63 (2004-01-11) on blade2.cesmail.net

X-spam-Level: ***

X-spam-Status: hits=3.6 tests=FORGED_MUA_OUTLOOK,FORGED_OUTLOOK_TAGS,

HTML_20_30,HTML_MESSAGE,HTML_TAG_EXISTS_TBODY,RCVD_NUMERIC_HELO

version=2.63

X-SpamCop-Checked: 192.168.1.101 203.11.105.126 216.180.225.138 217.129.240.127

X-SpamCop-Disposition: Blocked bl.spamcop.net

This is a multi-part message in MIME format.

------=_NextPart_000_0000_28DCC10D.9B8EC6C9

Content-Type: multipart/alternative;

    boundary="----=_NextPart_001_0001_04DC6531.8CCC6409"

------=_NextPart_001_0001_04DC6531.8CCC6409

Content-Type: text/plain; charset=iso-8859-1

Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit

Good Day

Thirty-three percent of users think that if a company has a top ranking on a search

engine, it is a leader in its field.

Are you a leader? You can be, and we want to help. We have a CD duplication site with

over 1391 number 1 positions and over 6232 top 10 positions.

We have a book resource site with more than 1000 number 1 positions and over 5225 top

10 positions. (44,000 search engine visitors in a few short months)

We even have a very niche pen site that has over 86 number 1 positions and over 556

top 10 positions.

We want to partner with you to help insure the success of your business. When you open

an account today, your first 5,000 targeted search engine visits on the keyword terms

that you've approved will be just 10c each. Your 99-dollar keyword analysis is also free

as well as a free 30-minute Internet marketing consultation.

For more information please complete the form at:

http://WWW.SEO-PROFITS.COM

Due to the highly effective techniques we use, we can only take a limited number of accounts per

targeted industry. Offer only valid for x customers. Please act now to receive 10,000 targeted

search engine visitors from major search engines at just 10c each as well as the free keyword

analysis and the free 30-minute consultation.

I hope that you will let us help you make 2004 your best year yet. Feel free to contact us at

support[at]seo-profits.com if you need us to make any changes to your email preferences.

------=_NextPart_001_0001_04DC6531.8CCC6409

Content-Type: text/html; charset=iso-8859-1

Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit

<HTML><HEAD><TITLE>Expert Search Engine Optimization for x and Yahoo</TITLE>

</HEAD>

<BODY>

<CENTER>

<TABLE cellSpacing=0 cellPadding=0 width=600 align=center border=0>

  <TBODY>

  <TR>

    <TD>

      <P><SPAN class=newsletter>Good Day

      <P>Thirty-three percent of users think that if a company has a top ranking

      on a search engine, it is a leader in its field.

      <P>Are you a leader? You can be, and we want to help. We have a CD

      duplication site with over 1391 number 1 positions and over 6232 top 10

      positions.

      <P>We have a book resource site with more than 1000 number 1 positions and

      over 5225 top 10 positions. (44,000 search engine visitors in a few short

      months)

      <P>We even have a very niche pen site that has over 86 number 1 positions

      and over 556 top 10 positions.

      <P>We want to partner with you to help insure the success of your

      business. When you open an account today, your first 5,000 targeted search

      engine visits on the keyword terms that you've approved will be just 10c

      each. Your 99-dollar keyword analysis is also free as well as a free

      30-minute Internet marketing consultation.

      <P></SPAN>

      <P>Complete this form to find out more.

      <P>

      <FORM action=http://www.seo-profits.com/submit.php method=post>

      <TABLE cellSpacing=2 cellPadding=2 width="100%" border=0>

        <TBODY>

        <TR>

          <TD><B>Name</B><BR><INPUT maxLength=35 size=25 name=name></TD>

          <TD><B>Email Address</B><BR><INPUT maxLength=50 size=25

          name=email></TD></TR>

        <TR>

          <TD><B>Phone </B>(Area Code + Number)<BR><INPUT maxLength=20 size=25

            name=phone></TD>

          <TD><B>Country</B><BR><SELECT name=country> <OPTION

              value="Please Choose" selected>Please Choose</OPTION> <OPTION

              value="USA EAST">USA East</OPTION> <OPTION value="USA CENTRAL">USA

              Central</OPTION> <OPTION value="USA WEST">USA West</OPTION>

              <OPTION value=Canada>Canada</OPTION> <OPTION

              value="United Kingdom">United Kingdom</OPTION> <OPTION

              value=Other>Other</OPTION></SELECT> </TD></TR>

        <TR>

          <TD><B>Web Site Address</B><BR><SPAN

            class=tinytype>http://www.</SPAN><INPUT maxLength=35 size=16

            name=website></TD>

          <TD><B>Please call me in the</B><BR><SELECT name=timetocall>

              <OPTION value=morning selected>Morning</OPTION> <OPTION

              value=afternoon>Afternoon</OPTION> <OPTION

              value=evening>Evening</OPTION></SELECT></TD></TR></TBODY></TABLE><INPUT type=submit value=submit>

      </FORM>

      <P>Due to the highly effective techniques we use, we can only take a

      limited number of accounts per targeted industry. Offer only valid for x

      customers. Please <B><A href="http://www.seo-profits.com/">act now</A></B>

      to receive 5,000 targeted search engine visitors from major search engines

      at just 10c each as well as the free keyword analysis and the free

      30-minute consultation.

      <P><BR>

      <P><SPAN class=tinytype>I hope that you will let us help you make 2004

      your best year yet. Feel free to contact us at support[at]seo-profits.com if

      you need us to make any changes to your email preferences.<BR>

      <P></SPAN></P></TD></TR></TBODY></TABLE></CENTER></BODY></HTML>

------=_NextPart_001_0001_04DC6531.8CCC6409--

------=_NextPart_000_0000_28DCC10D.9B8EC6C9--

Can someone please explain to me how this has been intrepreted as me sending the spam? Haven't the hosts (ozehosts.com) read the email incorrectly? Why was it sent to them in the first place? Or have I been unconsciously spamming people?

Geoff

Link to comment
Share on other sites

A very quick parsing by hand leads me to guess that the SpamCop parser is getting confused by the header

Received: from amavis

by mail.acslink.net.au // 203.11.105.126

with scanned-ok (Exim 3.36 #1 (Debian))

id 1Be0lf-0006hS-00

for <x>;

Sat, 26 Jun 2004 10:10:03 +1000

since "amavis" can not be identified. Bad server config, maybe? This assuming that the server(s) at [216.154.195.*] are the ones being falsely accused.

My second guess is that SC gets confused at

Received: from unknown (192.168.1.101) // internal server

by blade2.cesmail.net with QMQP; // 216.154.195.43

25 Jun 2004 14:15:53 -0000

due to the internal server being in the middle of the chain.

My very quick guess is that the spam is coming in at

tahoe.dnsrouter.com ([216.180.225.138])

which may or may not be accurately reporting where it got the message from.

OK, and a bit more research shows your jazzalburywodonga.com server to be

Name: tahoe.dnsrouter.com

IP Address: 216.180.225.138

Given that, looks like you might have an open proxy or open relay or a bad mailform scri_pt on your server.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I don't know a lot about headers, but I would say that the spammer was

217.129.240.127 which is on SORBS and a bunch of other lists. I checked the link in the email you posted and apparently spamcop now chooses that IP number.

Tracking message source: 217.129.240.127:

Routing details for 217.129.240.127

[refresh/show] Cached whois for 217.129.240.127 : abuse[at]netvisao.pt

Using abuse net on abuse[at]netvisao.pt

abuse net netvisao.pt = abuso[at]netvisao.pt

Using best contacts abuso[at]netvisao.pt

Sorry, this email is too old to file a spam report. You must report spam within 3 days of receipt. This mail was received on 25 Jun 2004 14:15:52 -0000

Message is 5.8 days old

However when the report was made, it did send reports to 216.180.225.138

Reports regarding this spam have already been sent:

Re: 216.180.225.138 (Administrator of network where email originates)

Reportid: 1081953545 To: abuse[at]gnax.net

Reportid: 1081953547 To: abuse[at]mfn.com

If there was a mistake, it was either temporary or has been fixed.

This is a lesson to you to check where your reports are going before you send them! Hope you can convince your host to reinstall you if you promise to read where the spamcop report is going before sending.

Miss Betsy

Link to comment
Share on other sites

There are all sorts of things wrong with the simple assumption this ISP came too. They did not even notify us that our account was shut down, no course of reproach. We didn't find out until we went to post.

This is just one of the reasons I now am setting up my own hosting server, that I find so many hosts update stuff and don't even send out a broadcast to inform clients of changes. Often this has happened and things have broken. It's just sloppy on their part . They do not double check such things and jump to the first assumption.

Geoff

Link to comment
Share on other sites

There are all sorts of things wrong with the simple assumption this ISP came too.  They did not even notify us that our account was shut down, no course of reproach.  We didn't find out until we went to post.

This is just one of the reasons I now am setting up my own hosting server, that I find so many hosts update stuff and don't even send out a broadcast to inform clients of changes.  Often this has happened and things have broken.  It's just sloppy on their part .  They do not double check such things and jump to the first assumption.

Geoff

That is their perrogative. It is up to the ISP to make the determination of the source of the spam. Perhaps they folowed spamcops logic and trusted it, though right now, that parse points to: 217.129.240.127 with reports going to: abuse[at]netvisao.pt

Your duty as a spamcop reporter is to check where your reports are going. It looks to me like you reported your own ISP as a spammer. They did not take that kindly and shut you down.

From: "Geoff Deering" <1081953545[at]reports.spamcop.net>

To: <abuse[at]gnax.net>

Subject: [spamCop (216.180.225.138) id:1081953545]Search engine traffic

Date: Friday, June 25, 2004 3:37 PM

I have been having a long conversation in this very forum about accurate reports and the next post I see is the fallout from an innaccurate report.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Archived

This topic is now archived and is closed to further replies.

×
×
  • Create New...