Brian wrote:
I noticed in my mail server logs that about a dozen or so scans came from relay=securityscan.sec.rr.com. They were all attempts to relay E-Mail through my mail server.I contacted them asking what this was. They basically said they were going to scan every mail server that sent mail to anyone at rr.com and I could either allow it or they would block my mail server from sending mail to anyone there. One one hand, I think it's great they are making a stab at stopping spam, but on the other, I feel their efforts are misguided. They will block any mail server that allows relaying which, like many attempts at spam filtering, will also stop legitimate mails as well. They also don't seem likely to be helpful to any system they decide to block by informing them of such. Those blocked systems must just discover that they were blocked, then attempt to find out why. Here's the answer they sent:
I have read their response, and for the sake of saving bandwidth,
I am not including it. I completely agree with their answer to you,
and would further ask you why would anyone run a mailserver with open
relays? You are asking for many problems by doing so, and you are making
the internet a much more difficult place to navigate by inviting unscupulous bastards to use your mailserver for their filthy deeds. Maybe you could supply a reason for allowing a public mailserver to have open relays. I can not think of any reason for it!
Furthermore, if you read their response to you, you will see that they do send notification of why you can not pass mail to their network:
[QUOTE]
"If found to be an open proxy or smtp relay, the IP address will
be blocked at our mail gateway borders with one of the following error
messages:
ERROR:5.7.1:550 Mail Refused - See
http://security.rr.com/mail_blocks.htm#proxy
ERROR:5.7.1:550 Mail Refused - See
http://security.rr.com/mail_blocks.htm#relay";
I only wish more people would set up their mailservers as such. We would all be so much better off. Thanks for sharing the letter. I hope it is something we all think about before *just* turning on sendmail or postfix.
drjung
--
J. Craig Woods
UNIX Network/System Administration
http://www.trismegistus.net/resume.html
Character is built upon the debris of despair --Emerson
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