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SpamArchive.org No More?

Posted by Hemos on from the where-have-all-the-cowboys-gone dept.

IrishMASMS writes "Back on November 21, 2002 Slashdot announced SpamArchive.org had just been launched. I configured my spam filters to submit to these guys. Well, the last few I have sent rejected; giving a 553 (sorry, that domain isn't in my list of allowed rcpthosts) error. Did some digging, and come to find out the SpamArchive.org site is just a placeholder; and the WHOIS shows virtualclicks.com aka PSI-USA, Inc. dba Domain Robot aka a Robert Farris now owns the domain. Some searching on the net indicates the fellow is a domain squatter. Anyone know the story as to what happened, and if the Spam Archive project is now dead? Was the Spam Archive project even a benefit or value added to the fight against spam?"

5 of 65 comments (clear)

  1. Re:Was it a benefit? Don't know, never heard of it by Kelson · · Score: 3, Informative

    Considering this is the first time I've heard of it, probably not as much as it should have been. Did it help SpamAssassin

    According to Justin Mason, it didn't help SpamAssassin much, at least where testing the effectiveness of rules was concerned. The main problems were that (1) the data was too anonymized to be able to properly test header checks and (2) submissions weren't verified, meaning someone would have to go through the archive and check to make sure there wasn't any legit mail that had accidentally been dropped into the wrong folder. (And, of course, unless you're the original recipient, you can't be absolutely certain whether something was solicited or not.)

  2. Re:Spam Archive of limited use by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 2, Informative

    Ham has been used as the opposite of spam for quite a while. It is not a new thing.
    Not to mention it quite effectively shows the difference between the two types quickly.

  3. Re:ipfilter too. by Dark_Gravity · · Score: 2, Informative

    ipfilter.org is similarly going to a domin squatting link page.

    i need a filter that notices these bogus pages and blocks them.

    If you run your own DNS, you can configure an authoritative zone that reports the domain names of squatter sites as nonexistent, thereby effectively preventing you from having to stumble upon many of the squatters' domains.

    --
    Bring back Sirius Punk!
  4. WatchMySpam.com - now with RSS feed by mgkimsal2 · · Score: 1, Informative

    I'm sorry to see the spamarchive gone, but do want to point out that http://www.watchmyspam.com/ (*) has been going for a few months now. Not trying to one up spamarchive, as I've never heard of them, but WMS provides an RSS feed of current spam, which would make integrating the spam in to your own applications that much easier.

    * While it's not fully web 2.0 compliant, it does have a shiny logo, is still in 'beta', and uses some javascript for not much real benefit.

    --
    creation science book
  5. the archive by grandargh · · Score: 2, Informative

    the original hosting company went under and its bits and pieces got swished around and sold and resold and one day you look up and nothing is like you left it, and the process for resolution requires actual pieces of paper, an adventure in the big room, and oh so much judicial bs.

    sonofabitch!

    I have no timetable for the resolution of the particular issue, as it is high on the headache scale and low on the business critical scale.

    --adam