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The Internet and Access to Information Why is it so difficult to eliminate SPAM? By: Juan C. Vargas Computer Science 450

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The Internet and Access to Information. Why is it so difficult to eliminate SPAM?. By:Juan C. Vargas Computer Science 450. Spam has become a major problem in our society and despite many attempts, no perfect solution has been found. Internet E-mail Spam Percentage. Source: Symantec - PowerPoint PPT Presentation

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Page 1: The Internet and Access to Information

The Internet and Access to Information

Why is it so difficult to eliminate SPAM?

By: Juan C. Vargas

Computer Science 450

Page 2: The Internet and Access to Information

Spam has become a major problem in our society and despite many attempts, no perfect solution has been found.

Internet E-mail Spam Percentage

Source: Symantechttp://eval.symantec.com/mktginfo/enterprise/other_resources/b-state_of_spam_report_10-2008.en-us.pdf

Page 3: The Internet and Access to Information

Regions of SPAM Origin◦ United States 29%◦ Turkey 8%◦ Russia 7%

◦ South Korea 4%◦ China 4%◦ India 4%◦ Brazil 3%

Malware detected in E-mail Messages

Page 4: The Internet and Access to Information

Measures Taken Against SPAM

Top Malware detected (2008)◦ Trojan Horse 13.4%◦ Downloader 11.8%◦ Infostealer 11.1%

LawThe CAN-SPAM Act of 2003

Unsubscribe Compliance Content Compliance Sending Behavior Compliance

Content is Exempt if it consists of: Religious Messages Political messages National Security Messages

Page 5: The Internet and Access to Information

The CAN-SPAM Act is commonly referred to by anti-spam activists as the YOU-CAN-SPAM Act because:

◦The bill does not require e-mailers to get permission before they send marketing messages.

◦It also prevents states from enacting stronger anti-spam protections.

◦The Act has been largely unenforced About 1% of SPAM complies with CAN-SPAM ACT

Page 6: The Internet and Access to Information

Software◦SPAM Filters and Blockers

Examine the header and content of the message, and look for various features◦Where the message came from◦What software sent the message ◦What the message looks like

Extensions linked to SPAM◦ade adp app asd asf asx bas bat chm cmd com

cpl crt dll exe fxp hlp hta hto inf ini ins isp jse lib lnk mdb mde msc msi msp mst ocx pcd pif prg rar reg scr sct sh shb shs sys url vb vbe vbs vcs vxd wmd wms wmz wsc wsf wsh

Page 7: The Internet and Access to Information

Blacklisting◦Keeps on growing and changing◦Causes problems when a Legit ISPs get

blacklisted E-mails are not received on time or not receive at

all until problem is resolved.

WhitelistingUser has to allow valid senders. (Time

Consuming)Keep updating white list every time a valid

sender changes it addressProblem: Zombie Computers

Page 8: The Internet and Access to Information

Zombie Computers◦In September 2008, there was a 101 percent

increase in the number of active zombie computers sending spam.

◦Top countries hosting zombie machines Turkey 12% Brazil 9% Russia 8% India 6% United States 6%

Page 9: The Internet and Access to Information

ConclusionBecause of Zombie Computers

maintaining a Blacklist or white list will not solve the problem of SPAM

CAN-SPAM ACT has many flaws and without the compromise of all countries around the world it is useless.