The War Between Spammers and ISPs/Mail Services

We (the community of responsible online small businesses) understand that ISPs have to filter e-mail that we send to our clients. Spam is overwhelming them.

Filtering algorithms and anti-spam software are complex, will only get more so. And the volume of spam is in the billions. So mistakes are inevitable.

We recognize that and we stand ready to deal with the fact that an ISP will occasionally delete a bona fide e-mail that we send to a client. After all, we are all partners in the fight against spam.

When you're dealing with billions of spam e-mail, those "occasional" mistakes amount to the hundreds of thousands of good e-mails that are wrongly blocked daily. It's so common, ISPs and mail services have a term for it... "false positives." (In a war, it's called "collateral damage" and we are all at war... against spammers.)

False positives occur due to a near-infinite combination of reasons, that usually involve some combination of the following...

• filtering e-mail is extremely complex and "false positives" are inevitable, even in the hands of the most sophisticated and best intentioned
  
  
• ISPs can set the tightness of the net of the filter, resulting in a higher "false-positive" rate -- the overzealous ISP catches more tuna, but also catches more dolphins by mistake
  
  
• honest marketing companies can become "accidental dolphins" in a variety of way... using words in their e-mails that trigger filters by mistake (ex., "income"), having affiliates who do something wrong without their knowledge, having too many inactive e-mail addresses in their list of customers, sabotage by unethical competitors, etc., etc., etc.
  
  
• some filters are run by unfair, vigilante groups who are actually more anti-business than anti-spam, and too quick to "shoot first and never ask questions."

Yes, "false positives" are so common that some ISPs and mail services take it for granted. Worse, they take you and us, and our good will, for granted.

If you think about it, here's the bottom line...

STEP 1) You want an e-mail from Easy Home Business, whether due to an order, subscription, registration, or request for support.

STEP 2) Easy Home Business sends the requested e-mail.

STEP 3) Your ISP or mail service mistakenly filters it out.

STEP 4) You do not get the mail that you want.

Up to this point, we all accept that this may happen. After all, your ISP or mail service is trying to protect you from spam. So...

As long as you can whitelist yourself and receive the mail you want (as described on our Whitelisting Page), there's no real damage done. We all have to put up with some inconvenience to fight spam, as long as the ISPs are doing their most to keep your inconvenience down to the "necessary minimum."

A Problem That We Hope Does Not Happen To You...
The ISP or Mail Service that Does Not "Whitelist"

What worries us? We worry about your inconvenience. We worry that you might think that somehow we here at Easy Home Business are at fault, especially if you have trouble whitelisting yourself (for example, Hotmail is notoriously ineffective at whitelisting, or "safelisting" as they call it).

If you do not get our e-mail, please understand...

We are NOT at fault. We are "false positives," collateral damage in the war between spammers and filters. And you, unfortunately, are stuck here in the cross-fire with us.

And like we said, we can live and deal with that. But it may get worse...

If you have trouble whitelisting, contact your ISP or mail service's help by e-mail, Web form, or best of all directly by phone. But beware, ISPs or mail services who do not or cannot whitelist are at a big competitive disadvantage. Why?

Because there are others who will gladly accept your business.

So... the support staff at an ISP or mail service who does not whitelist (and they may not even admit this to you) may try to convince you that somehow we are to blame (our customers have told us so). It is simply far easier for them to use the credibility of their sheer size to blame us or to say "it's at the other end," than it is to admit they are failing to deliver what their clients expect... the mail.

If they refuse to accept responsibility, or if they try to confuse you with one of a whole bunch of copy-and-paste excuses, blame, or misdirections, clear the air of all the smoke and mirrors -- remind them of the fundamental, common-sense, sequence of events...

STEP 1) You want an e-mail from Easy Home Business, whether due to an order, subscription, registration, or request for support.

STEP 2) Easy Home Business sent the requested e-mail.

STEP 3) Your ISP or mail service filtered it out.

STEP 4) You did not get the mail that you wanted.

STEP 5) And now, they STILL won't give it to you, even though you are insisting that you want it, even though you are asking them to whitelist our domains (as explained on our Whitelisting Page).

Then ask them what they don't understand about where the chain of events is breaking. We have done our part (Step 2).

Even If You're A "Newbie,"
It's Clear Where The Break In The Chain Is

Review the 5 Steps outlined above. It's so basic... At the end of the day, it's their "break in the chain" if you are not receiving the mail. So the sincerest way to show your displeasure...

If you use Hotmail and they're giving you excuses, switch to Yahoo! Mail. If your ISP won't whitelist, switch to a responsible one that will.

Ultimately, war or no war against spam, it is the perceived DUTY of the ISP or mail service to deliver the mail. That is the level at which the above sequence is breaking down.

Even if they hide behind technical jargon of "smtp servers" or legalistic small print of "being private networks that don't have to deliver the mail," your answer is simple...

"Gee, that's a shame it wasn't clear in your marketing materials. I wouldn't have to waste my time switching to a better service that DOES enable me to get the mail that I want."

And it is as simple as that. So...

Ask them, one final time, to whitelist you. We are sending the e-mail to the address you indicated. So it's up to your ISP or mail service to deliver the mail.

They may claim not be able to whitelist for one or more reasons...

1) Your ISP will not do it. They may make up all kinds of excuses, or even blame us, but the bottom line is that they are not delivering e-mail that YOU want. Period.

2) You can't get their support group to tell you how to whitelist. Either they don't answer you, or they dance around the question, or deflect blame.

3) They don't provide the tools to whitelist, or the tools don't work, or it's simply technically impossible for them to do it. For example, the "safe list" at Hotmail does not work when you want to permit an address through their filter. Their shortcomings have become your problem. Switch.

4) Your ISP responds to a whitelist request BY TURNING OFF THE SPAM FILTERS COMPLETELY. That's like asking someone to put a gate in the high wall around your house and the reply is... "Sure, we'll just take the ENTIRE wall down." That is an irresponsible and self-focused response to a valid request -- it merely turfs the problem back onto the customer, which is an unacceptable reply. Do not accept this poor proposition.

There is only one good reason not to whitelist, and that is to block known spammers. We don't spam. We never have. (And we would definitely want to know of any ISP or mail service or filtering provider who claims that we do.)

It's An Obvious Bottom Line...
You Want & Expect Your Mail

If you cannot whitelist Easy Home Business, consider these two inarguable truisms...

• You expect to receive e-mail that you want.
  
  
• A company that can't deliver that basic expectation deserves to lose your business.

No matter what the "reason" may be for not whitelisting, it all boils down to the same thing...

Your ISP is not fulfilling your most basic of expectations.

So What To Do??

1) Complain by sending an e-mail to "abuse@" and "postmaster@" followed by the domain of your ISP or mail service (ex., if you are using an address@hotmail.com, send your complaint to abuse@hotmail.com and postmaster@hotmail.com). Mail to both those addresses has an excellent chance of being seen by at least one person.

This is a sample e-mail to send:

For this to work, customize as follows...

a) To field: Enter the domain of the service. Example: "abuse@hotmail.com" (without the quotes).

b) Subject: Again, enter the domain of your ISP or mail service. In the case of our example, the subject should say, "Hotmail, please stop blocking important e-mail that I want" (without quotes).

c) cc field: If the "to" address of "abuse@" does not get through, the "postmaster@" address will. Do the same thing for the postmaster@ENTER-DOMAIN-OF-YOUR-ISP-OR-MAIL-SERVICE address

d) Body of e-mail: Customize the body of the e-mail. Add your own story and circumstances. Remind them of the 5 basic steps (above), if necessary. Note the spots to enter your first name last name, and e-mail address. Make sure that you use your e-mail address of the ISP or mail service for extra weight/consideration, both in the body and in your "from" address.

e) Proof-read it all. Once it's right, you are ready to lodge a formal complaint.

f) Send it.

You might not get a reply, but regardless, it is important to register a complaint when a company does not deliver the service for which you contracted.

What Else Can You Do?

2) Use a different e-mail address, and e-mail your question to us again, if you are here because you have been having trouble receiving our support-replies. (If you want to use a free, Web-based address, Yahoo! Mail receives our e-mail without any problem.)

One More Thing You Can Do To Register Displeasure...

3) Register a Complaint with the Filtering Provider

This is the interesting, unknown part of the "world of filtering." Filtering providers are companies that provide filtering services for many ISPs and mail services. They work behind the scenes, invisibly.

Since they provide the filtering for so many ISPs and mail services, even Hotmail, there is a good chance that they are involved if you are having trouble whitelisting Easy Home Business.com domain.

If you have been affected by the loss of e-mail that should not have been filtered (if you use hotmail.com, msn.com, bellsouth.net, earthlink.net, usa.net, verizon.net, worldnet.att.net, comcast.net or some other Brightmail-filtered ISP/mail service), enter their contest by sending them your "False Positive Story" for a chance to win a digital camera.

Send them an e-mail like the following one:

Hello, My name is <<ENTER YOUR FULL NAME>>. I am a customer of <<ENTER NAME OF ISP OR WEB HOST>>, a company that uses your e-mail filtering services. Here is my False Positive Story: <<ENTER YOUR FALSE-POSITIVE STORY HERE. ONLY ENTER A STORY IF YOUR ISP OR MAIL SERVICE USES BRIGHTMAIL TO FILTER (EX., HOTMAIL.COM, MSN.COM, BELLSOUTH.NET, EARTHLINK.NET, USA.NET, VERIZON.NET, WORLDNET.ATT.NET, COMCAST.NET, OR IF YOU KNOW THAT YOUR PARTICULAR ISP USES THEM).>> I do want to receive www.easy-home-business.com e-mail. I am also going to be e-mailing the network administrator of my mail service, informing them that I am switching accounts if I cannot get it. Please reply to <<ENTER YOUR E-MAIL ADDRESS THAT BRIGHTMAIL IS FILTERING>>, which is the receiving address that incorrectly filters out Easy Home Business e-mail. Anxiously awaiting your reply, <<ENTER YOUR FULL NAME>>

We Are Sincerely Sorry For This Bother

We sent the mail. You want the mail. It is your expectation to receive it, no matter what they say.

We only ever send you e-mail that you specifically request and expect. Please tell your mail service that you understand that false-positives do occur, but it is unacceptable not to be able to whitelist.

Then change ISPs or mail services. And let them know why.