WHO AUTHORIZED YOU TO BLOCK MY E-MAIL?

[sinbad7]

I would like to ask the spamcop.net who authorized them to block all my outgoing e-mails? My account is tore.yachtmarine.com and since yesterday I have had to use an alternative e-mail server. You are also soliciting web hosting services through your other company webmasters.com which is a worse spam than the one you are trying to protect us against. I am quite happy with my web hosting company American Internet Communications thank you.

I insist you remove this block with immediate effect or I shall take legal advice...

Tore Christiansen

YACHTMARINE

[Miss Betsy]

Try reading Why am I blocked? pinned FAQ at http://forum.spamcop.net/forums/index.php?showtopic=35

or Why am I blocked? in the spamcop Lounge

http://forum.spamcop.net/forums/index.php?showtopic=509

One of these should help you to understand and find out how to resolve the problem.

I am glad that you discovered a way to communicate while the problem is being resolved. It is too bad that spammers have ruined the Internet for the rest of us, but threatening legal action against those who make locks doesn't help.

Miss Betsy

[Merlyn]

I would like to ask the spamcop.net who authorized them to block all my outgoing e-mails?  My account is tore.yachtmarine.com  and since yesterday I have had to use an alternative e-mail server.  You are also soliciting web hosting services through your other company webmasters.com  which is a worse spam than the one you are trying to protect us against.  I am quite happy with my web hosting company  American Internet Communications thank you.

I insist you remove this block with immediate effect or I shall take legal advice...

Tore Christiansen

YACHTMARINE

Spamcop does not block email. Whoever you are sending your mail to is blocking you.

There is no legal action you can take. Anyone can block whatever they want. There is no law against blocking email. Whatever gave you that looney idea?

If you want assistance then post the reject message or the IP of the server you think is blocked.

[sinbad7]

Hello Merlyn... I do´nt know the technicalities involved only that my e-mail suddenly does not work and is blocked to whichever adress I send to including a test mail to myself.

I am using Incredi Mail but my own domain e-mail server: tore[at]yachtmarine.com

This is the error message i get whenever I try to send any message:

rblsmtpd: 200.148.12.144 pid 26168: 451 Blocked - see http://www.spamcop.net/bl.shtml?200.148.12.144

220 rblsmtpd.local

Using the same ISP but a different e-mail adress in Outlook Express it all works fine.

All this unsolicited mumbo jumbo is causing me a lot of time and annoyance as I am trying to run a business here. Cocky replies from you does not help anybody...

[chrism]

Spamcop doesn't "block" e-mail, but it does maintain a "blacklist" of mail servers through which spam has been sent. In your case, it seems as if your mail is either being sent from, or routed through, a mail server with the IP address "200.148.12.144" which has got itself blacklisted. This is, as a matter of interest, a mail server registered in Brazil at "dsl.telesp.net.br".

Your ISP, it would appear is (like many) using Spamcop's "blacklist" to reject e-mail from known spam sources.

I'm guessing that your domain is registered with a web provider who hosts many domains. What's happening is that someone - presumably one of your web provider's other customers - is sending out spam through the same mail server that you use, which has resulting in people blocking your e-mail too. Unfortunately this is just a sad fact of life; it's happened to me on several occasions, since I too use a "shared" mail server for my business.

The blacklist is "dynamic" - if there are no further reports of spam from that server it will be removed from the blacklist in (I think) 48 hours. You really need to contact the owner of your mail server, and get them to find out who is sending spam through their server.

Hope that's of some help to you.

Regards,

Chris

[Miss Betsy]

I am not technically fluent, but I looked your IP address up in the list of blocklists and spamcop is the least of your troubles. This IP address is blocked by most of the major blocklists.

Merlyn does not mean to be cocky - he is a user of spamcop and knows a lot about how email works and is willing to help you find a solution to your problem in the same way someone stops to help a motorist with a flat tire.

If you post again in the spamcop help forum

http://forum.spamcop.net/forums/index.php?showforum=3

there are more people there who can help you. Most of the people who visit this forum are looking for help with their spamcop email service.

Miss Betsy

[Jeff G.]

Moved from SpamCop Email to SpamCop Help because, while it has something to do with SpamCop, it has nothing to do with the SpamCop Email System.

[Chris Parker]

rblsmtpd: 200.148.12.144 pid 26168: 451 Blocked - see http://www.spamcop.net/bl.shtml?200.148.12.144

220 rblsmtpd.local

You may want to check http://dnsbl.info/lookup.asp?IP=200.148.12.144 for a list of other systems which indicate there is spam eminating from that IP address.

You may want to run complete antivirus sweep on your computer to make sure it's not infected with a virus or has been otherwise compromised.

That IP address is considered to by dynamic space. You really shouldn't run a mail server on dynamic IP space. What may have happened is that prior to the IP address being issued to you, it was issued to a spammer, someone infected with a virus, or a compromised machine. That is one of the major disadvantages of running a mail server on a dynamic IP address. Also happens to be in SPEWS (http://www.spews.org/html/S1297.html) space. Changes are that you will have problems with mail until your ISP cleans up it's act.

[Jeff G.]

If it is indeed a dynamic IP Address, then releasing and renewing the lease may get you a different Address.

[sinbad7]

I have used my web hosting company American Internet Communications Inc.

for many years with my domain name: yachtmarine.com e-mail: tore[at]yachtmarine.com.

I have never sent spam and I think it is a very strange action to for example block all telephone subscribers because some are making dirty phone calls... the comparison is the same..

Who on the internet authorized any particular company to take on this role? I thought

the internet was supposed to be a free media. I am as tired of spammers as anybody and daily add to my list of blocked companies but this is a ridiculous approach to block all servers who happen to have some customers sending spam. It is far from easy to eliminate all spammers and in the meantime will all their 80-90% of innocent users be without a service and must find alternatives mostly with new e-mail names perhaps established for years. It may be easy for some private users but a major problem for the many business users who must reprint all their stationery, cards, brochures etc. Not a very well thought out prevention method...

The problem must be with my dynamic e-mail box on my domain hosting because

I can use any other e-mail adress through my ISP UOL.com.br without beeing

blocked. This is a brand new occurrance to me which has happened within the past two days. I have a DSL connection through a company called SPEEDY which is

part of the Brazilian national phone company and my ISP called UOL is one

of the largest in Brazil and a responsible company.

My companys name is YACHTMARINE (no I am not spamming) and my e-mail adress has always been tore[at]yachtmarine.com or info[at]yachtmarine.com etc. etc. and

I am not changing my name to satisfy SpamCop´s sister company offering cheap

web hosting.

[Jeff G.]

I think I need to explain better.

I have used my web hosting company  American Internet Communications Inc.

for many years with my domain name: yachtmarine.com  e-mail: tore[at]yachtmarine.com. 

I have never sent spam and I think it is a very strange action to for example block all telephone subscribers because some are making dirty phone calls...  the comparison is the same..

The SpamCop Blocking List (SCBL) only lists IP Addresses, not domain names.

Who on the internet authorized any particular company to take on this role?

Not applicable. Many Administrators at ISPs and individual companies which comprise the Internet have taken it upon themselves to protect themselves and their users/customers from sources of spam using the SCBL. They are blocking you, not the SCBL itself.

I thought

the internet was supposed to be a free media.

The Internet is a cooperative network of networks. The administrators of those networks get to decide what traffic to allow over those networks.

I am as tired of spammers as anybody and daily add to my list of blocked companies  but  this is a ridiculous approach to block all  servers who happen to have some customers sending spam. It is far from easy to eliminate all spammers and in the meantime will all their 80-90% of innocent users be without a service and must find alternatives mostly with new e-mail names perhaps established for years.  It may be easy for some private users but a major problem for the many business users who must reprint all their stationery, cards, brochures etc. Not a very well thought out prevention method...

The problem must be with my dynamic e-mail box on my domain hosting because

I can use any other e-mail adress through my ISP  UOL.com.br  without beeing

blocked.  This is a brand new occurrance to me which has happened within the past two days.  I have a DSL connection through a company called SPEEDY which is

part of the Brazilian national phone company and my ISP called UOL is one

of the largest in Brazil and a responsible company.

My companys name is YACHTMARINE (no I am not spamming) and my e-mail adress has always been  tore[at]yachtmarine.com  or info[at]yachtmarine.com  etc. etc.  and

I am not changing my name to satisfy SpamCop´s sister company offering cheap

web hosting.

I was not asking you to change your domain name or your email address. I was asking you to try to change the IP Address of the telesp.net.br DSL connection you are using to access the Internet. On Windows PCs, this is generally done by running "IPCONFIG /RELEASE" followed by "IPCONFIG /RENEW".

[Miss Betsy]

Is English your native language? If not, then there may some excuse for your misunderstanding of what a blocklist is.

Who on the internet authorized any particular company to take on this role?

No one authorized any company to take on this role. Blocklists are the logical way to control unwanted email on the internet. There are, I believe, over 400 blocklists published. Anyone can make use of them or ignore them.

I am as tired of spammers as anybody and daily add to my list of blocked companies

And how do you block companies? did you know that blocking the return path is more than likely just blocking an innocent victim of spam since spammers forge those addresses using the addresses of their victims? Otherwise, you are also blocking "innocent" victims. There is no technical way to do it otherwise.

I am not changing my name to satisfy SpamCop´s sister company offering cheap

web hosting.

In the first place, the web hosting company has nothing to do with spamcop except for buying advertising space.

In the second place, no one has asked you to change your email address. SpamCop does not list email addresses; it lists IP addresses. Any problems with an IP address can probably be fixed without changing anyone's email address.

The problem must be with my dynamic e-mail box on my domain hosting

Although there is a blocklist based on dynamic email servers, SpamCop does not list based on that criterion. Spamcop only lists IP addresses that have been reported as sending spam.

You can rant and rave all you like. The internet is a free place. If people think that you have a case, then they won't use the spamcop blocklist to block email from the IP address you are using. If they prefer to let people know that they are not accepting email from IP addresses that also permit spam, then they will use spamcop.

If you re-read the pinned FAQ - particularly John's - you may find out that your problem can be remedied. You can also ask your provider to be more careful about allowing spammers to operate.

You, the sender of email, are the only one who can fix the problems that cause other internet service providers not to accept email from you.

Miss Betsy

[turetzsr]

Hi, Tore!

I would like to ask the spamcop.net who authorized them to block all my outgoing e-mails?

...Please see Pinned: FAQ Entry: Why is my email blocked? and Who appointed you the "cop" of the internet? Where do you get off?.

You are also soliciting web hosting services through your other company webmasters.com  which is a worse spam than the one you are trying to protect us against.

...The link to webmasters.com is on the spamcop.net web site. spam is e-mail. Links on websites to which you voluntarily navigate and which do not "pop up" can not reasonably be considered to be spam, IMHO (in my humble opinion).

I am quite happy with my web hosting company  American Internet Communications thank you.

...No one said that you had to switch hosting companies. However, if your hosting company is also hosting spammers and your hosting company is not responding in a timely way to requests to remove those spammers, then you may have to live with your e-mail being blocked by some e-mail and ISP administrators who do not want spam coming onto their networks (as is their absolute right).

I insist you remove this block with immediate effect or I shall take legal advice...

...You may, of course, seek legal counsel for any matter, but you should be aware that there is no law (at least, of which I am aware) that would force an e-mail provider or ISP to accept any particular e-mail from you, unless you have a contract with that provider to do so. FYI (for your information), you may see the term "cartooney" applied to your threat -- see The Net Abuse Jargon File for an explanation of what that is.

[turetzsr]

<snip>

I have never sent spam and I think it is a very strange action to for example block all telephone subscribers because some are making dirty phone calls...  the comparison is the same..

...No, it is absolutely not the same. It is more analogous to my individual phone company (SBC, Incorporated) blocking all calls from, say, China, because several of its subscribers have complained about receiving "dirty" phone calls from China Telecom (a fictitious company I just made up to illustrate my point) and China Telecom, when advised of this problem, ignored several calls from SBC asking them to stop those "dirty" phone calls.

Who on the internet authorized any particular company to take on this role?

...Answered in an earlier reply.

<snip> but  this is a ridiculous approach to block all  servers who happen to have some customers sending spam.

...You are absolutely correct. That is why SpamCop does not work that way!

[sinbad7]

Well now, I certainly seem to have got tempers going here which was not my intention.

I am very grateful to all the spam gurus for their in depth explanations in defense of blocklisting. But frankly, as an ignorant business user of internet I am not much the wiser and my problem still exists. I am unable to use my business e-mail adress I have used for at least 12 years, except by moving around using different e-mail programs for different e-mail adresses I am using. It seems I now also have to give up my ADSL connection as this is a "dynamic mail server" which seem to give all its users the same IP number, ( in this case 200.148.12.144) resulting in "painting all with the same tar brush".

All was well up until two days ago so my mail server uol.com.br must have introduced SpamCop quite recently.

As a point of interest, my ADSL server SPEEDY 200.148.12.144 is just a fast phone

connection I use instead of a slow modem and did not and still do´nt understand what

that has to do with my mail server uol and my e-mail transmissions. Am I to understand that my dynamic ADSL server intentionally has open ports through which spammers can infiltrate my mail on the fly?

Speedy, my ADSL server has millions of users. Sao Paulo alone has some 30 mill. inhabitants and is the hub of South American industry so it is not so easy calling the

boss for a chat as to why indeed he allows spammers.

Again, I am very grateful for any solutions..

[Miss Betsy]

I am not technically fluent about email systems so I can't give you any practical advice.

There are some spamcop users who have to use "spam-friendly" ISP's in order to get broadband connections and, like you, feel that they can't make any impression on the "spam-friendly" ISP's. However, eventually, there will be enough Brazilians who will be making noise that possibly your ISP will change their policies.

There are "workarounds" for people in your situation and I hope that someone who can explain them will post.

Also, unless you are using a router which blocks all ports, yes, spammers could be using your machine to send their spam.

I am truly sorry about your plight. It would be much nicer if everyone were "polite" and honest. I hope that someone will help you find a solution.

Miss Betsy

[yourbuddy]

The IP Address is listed on many "blacklists" including:

The Spamhaus Exploits Block List (XBL) a realtime database of IP addresses of

illegal 3rd party exploits, including open proxies (HTTP, socks, AnalogX, wingate,

etc), worms/viruses with built-in spam engines, and other types of trojan-horse.

[turetzsr]

Hi, Tore,

Well now, I certainly seem to have got tempers going here which was not my intention.

...Gee, I hope not. Some of us are bit terse with our answers -- please don't assume that just because a reply looks as if it might be an angy one, that it is. I think you may assume that everyone who replies here is interested in helping.

<snip> It seems I now also have to give up my ADSL connection as this is a "dynamic mail server" which seem to give all its users the same IP number, ( in this case 200.148.12.144) <snip>.

...Not necessarily. You may be able to work with Speedy or uol (or both) to gain assistance to remedy this problem.

All was well up until two days ago so my mail server uol.com.br  must have introduced SpamCop quite recently.

...It is not a matter of uol.com.br introducing SpamCop, but rather a user (or virus-like program) that apparently started sending spam e-mails that were reported by SpamCop members.

As a point of interest, my ADSL server SPEEDY 200.148.12.144 is just a fast phone connection I use instead of a slow modem and did not and still do´nt understand what that has to do with my mail server uol and my e-mail transmissions.

...You use your ADSL phone connection to establish a pathway that allows you to send information (including e-mails) out to uol. uol then provides the resources necessary to get that information out over the internet.

Am I to understand that my dynamic ADSL server intentionally has open ports through which spammers can infiltrate my mail on the fly?

...Either your PC, or one before it that was given the same IP address, may have a virus or compromised usercode or software that allows spammers to use it to send their spew (spam). It may be either intentional or unintentional.

Speedy, my ADSL server has millions of users.  Sao Paulo alone has some 30 mill. inhabitants and is the hub of South American industry so it is not so easy calling the boss for a chat as to why indeed he allows spammers. 

...Both Speedy and UOL should have a support line that allows even individual customers such as yourself to get assistance. If not, then it would be wise to consider seeking a different provider, if there is one available to you.

...Best of luck to you, my friend!

[Mikey]

I hate to jump into the fray here, but a couple of thoughts came to mind.

First, Sinbad, have you changed anything recently in your setup? Did you go to a new mail program? Did you get a new account with someone? Did you change PCs? It would be good to eliminate everything on your end. If we can do that, then we know the problem is down stream.

I know from my job, the first thing you always want to ask when things suddenly, violently go bad is, "What's changed?" Its a vital question because, obviously, if things were working and now they're not, SOMETHING did change. If you can confirm that nothing, NOTHING, is different on your end, we might be able to find the problem somewhere else.

To the crowd here.... I noticed he said EVERY E-mail is being blocked. I wonder if he was sending from his DSL account via some other server. That is, I wonder if, for whatever reason, he has is outbound SMTP server on a different domain. Would that cause this? It may allow him to sign in with his username and account but when it attempts to complete the SMTP transaction, it checks the BLs and barfs. Perhaps whoever runs his server just recently decided to turn on the BLs or has them implemented in a funny way so that it actually accepts the mail but then sends him a bounce when it tries to pass it off to the next MTA.

Obviously uol.com.br is not going to blacklist its own users so I think that is a red herring. I'd be curious to see the entire header(s) of the bounce to see exactly who is doing the bouncing.

[Derek T]

sinbad7,

people here really are trying to help you. please post a 'bounce' with ALL the headers so that the 'experts' can see what's going on. your problem seems to be very unusual and without all the necessary information we're all groping around in the dark.

[Merlyn]

Well now, I certainly seem to have got tempers going here which was not my intention.

I am very grateful to all the spam gurus for their in depth explanations in defense of blocklisting.  But frankly, as an ignorant business user of internet I am not much the wiser and my problem still exists.  I am unable to use my business e-mail adress I have used for at least 12 years, except  by moving around using different e-mail programs for different e-mail adresses I am using.  It seems I now also have to give up my ADSL connection as this is a "dynamic mail server" which seem to give all its users the same IP number, ( in this case 200.148.12.144)  resulting in "painting all with the same tar brush".

All was well up until two days ago so my mail server uol.com.br  must have introduced SpamCop quite recently.

As a point of interest, my ADSL server SPEEDY 200.148.12.144 is just a fast phone

connection I use instead of a slow modem and did not and still do´nt understand what

that has to do with my mail server uol and my e-mail transmissions.  Am I to understand that my dynamic ADSL server intentionally has open ports through which spammers can infiltrate my mail on the fly?

Speedy, my ADSL server has millions of users.  Sao Paulo alone has some 30 mill. inhabitants and is the hub of South American industry so it is not so easy calling the

boss for a chat as to why indeed he allows spammers. 

Again, I am very grateful for any solutions..

200.148.12.144 is a residential/Dynamic IP Range, many ISP's/Email Admins will not accept mail from these type ranges.

You must be running your own email server and that is why these blocks are bothering you. Why don't you use your ISP's mail server?

[Wazoo]

seems to me that what you need/want to do is send yourself an e-mail but to a different account on another system . say HotMail for instance. Once you get that e-mail on the other system, then sort out how to look at the full headers, and there you should see just who all is involved in the actual sending out of your e-mail, and in which order they happen. Then you might be able to answer the last question you asked, the relationship between SPEEDY, UOL, and your e-mail. If not, then you could certainly post those headers here and someone will try to walk through them to explain the handoffs between the systems.

[Spambo]

I have never sent spam and I think it is a very strange action to for example block all telephone subscribers because some are making dirty phone calls...  the comparison is the same..

No it is not the same. It would be the same if everyone in the exchange was calling from the same phone number.

If your provider's number is listed then it isn't inserting RFC 2821 compliant Received headers into the email.