Just set this machine up to run DPAD and checked my mail on it while doing so. Inbox full of viruses and Viagara rubbish as usual. Of course the spam comes from 2sduye746@hotmail.com and the viruses from spoofed email addresses that are just innocent parties.
I see that attempts to get Sender ID failed over licencing of Microsoft content (MARID was that it?) have fizzled.
Frustration. Why can't this stuff be handled as follows? Or is it already and just doesn't work:
1. SMTP server checks incoming mail for membership of its domain AND OR range of IP addresses
2. IF valid THEN GOTO 3; IF not valid THEN STOP (This works to halt traffic via open relay servers too)
3. Append to the mail message: Server name; IP address of Server (Post Office Stamp)
4. Append to the mail message: TIME; IP address of origin of message and MAC address if present or port if dial up (Stamp cancellation)
In short, the first smtp server receiving an unstamped mail will either stamp it or reject it dead.
POP servers check if mail is properly stamped and cancelled by SMTP server.
How to check validity of orginating stamp as per line 1.
If stamp appears valid then check server for validity. I see at least 2 possible ways to do this. Firstly a simple protocol like "Ping" could be used to see if its a True server or a phantom. If it doesn't answer then mail goes to a sin bin where it can wait for (time) whence it is checked again. Second failure and it is ditched. Maybe something even shorter sweeter and cleverer than "ping" could be used for server-exists validity. Second way could be a central registry of valid server certificates (like a DNS) that could be checked authoritively for server validity. There are bound to be other ways.
Surely this would allow email to be tracked to origin fairly quickly, beating the spoofs and giving the spammers a hard time and also pointing to the place a virus first appeared?
I see that attempts to get Sender ID failed over licencing of Microsoft content (MARID was that it?) have fizzled.
Frustration. Why can't this stuff be handled as follows? Or is it already and just doesn't work:
1. SMTP server checks incoming mail for membership of its domain AND OR range of IP addresses
2. IF valid THEN GOTO 3; IF not valid THEN STOP (This works to halt traffic via open relay servers too)
3. Append to the mail message: Server name; IP address of Server (Post Office Stamp)
4. Append to the mail message: TIME; IP address of origin of message and MAC address if present or port if dial up (Stamp cancellation)
In short, the first smtp server receiving an unstamped mail will either stamp it or reject it dead.
POP servers check if mail is properly stamped and cancelled by SMTP server.
How to check validity of orginating stamp as per line 1.
If stamp appears valid then check server for validity. I see at least 2 possible ways to do this. Firstly a simple protocol like "Ping" could be used to see if its a True server or a phantom. If it doesn't answer then mail goes to a sin bin where it can wait for (time) whence it is checked again. Second failure and it is ditched. Maybe something even shorter sweeter and cleverer than "ping" could be used for server-exists validity. Second way could be a central registry of valid server certificates (like a DNS) that could be checked authoritively for server validity. There are bound to be other ways.
Surely this would allow email to be tracked to origin fairly quickly, beating the spoofs and giving the spammers a hard time and also pointing to the place a virus first appeared?