Spam Firewall User Guide
From CFAES Help Documentation and FAQs Project
CFAES Messaging System Support Center > Spam Firewall User Guide
This document describes how end users interact with the CFAES Spam Firewall to check their quarantined messages, classify messages as spam and not spam, and modify their user preferences.
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Getting Started with the CFAES Spam Firewall
To get started using the CFAES Spam Firewall, there's nothing you need to do! By default, the spam filter will use the default settings for the messaging system and will automatically protect your system from email viruses and recognized spam messages. When the system has accumulated spam messages (stored in what is called the spam "quarantine") for you, it will contact you via your CFAES email account.
The Spam Firewall sends the following two types of messages to end users:
- A Greeting Message
- The Spam Quarantine Summary Report
Welcome to the Spam Firewall
The first time the Spam Firewall quarantines an email for you, the system sends you a greeting message with a subject line of “User Quarantine Account Information”. The greeting message contains the following information:
Welcome to the Barracuda Spam Firewall. This message contains the information you will need to access your Spam Quarantine and Preferences.
Your account has been set to the following username and password:
Username: <your email username>@cfaes.osu.edu
Password: <your default password>
Access your Spam Quarantine directly using the following link: http://enervate.cfaes.ohio-state.edu:8000/
The CFAES Spam Firewall automatically provides your login information (username and password) and the link to access the quarantine interface. You have the option of using this username and password or your CFAES Messaging System username and password to access your quarantine.
If you don't remember either of your logins, you can have a new login link sent to you again by visiting http://enervate.cfaes.ohio-state.edu:8000/. Enter your "cfaes.osu.edu" email address into the username field, then click "Creating New Password". In a few minutes your new login will arrive in your email.
Daily Quarantine Summary Report
After your initial welcome message, the CFAES Spam Firewall sends you a daily quarantine summary report so you can view the quarantined messages you did not receive. This is the simplest means of interacting with the Spam Firewall and doesn't require you to remember any login information. From the quarantine summary report you can add senders to your whitelist (eliminating the chance they'll be blocked in the future), delete spam messages, and have non-spam messages delivered to your inbox - just by clicking the appropriate links in the email.
When you receive the Spam Quarantine message, it will look similar to this:
For many users, the daily Quarantine Summary will serve as your window to the Spam Firewall. If you'd like to manage a large number of messages at once or access the advanced features of the Spam Firewall, you'll need to login to your quarantine directly. We'll look at this process now.
Accessing the Advanced Spam Firewall Interface
While the email interface is sufficient for day-to-day spam management, you can use the advanced interface to access additional features, including searching your messages, managing mail in bulk, and improving the spam filtering capabilities by helping the system determine what messages are spam, and which aren't. To access these features, you'll need to log into the Spam Firewall server.
Logging into the Spam Firewall
The easiest way to log into the system is through the link in your initial Spam Filter Welcome message, or by clicking the click here link found at the very end of every Quarantine Summary Report. Alternatively, visit http://enervate.ag.ohio-state.edu:8000/, enter your CFAES Messaging system username and password, then click the "Login" button.
Advanced Quarantine Management
Once you've successfully logged into the CFAES Spam Firewall, click the QUARANTINE INBOX tab to view a list of your quarantined messages. The Quarantine display works like a very simple email client, allowing you to work with the spam messages in a manner very similar to your desktop email application.
Basic Functions
Along the top of the message list you'll notice a "scroll-bar" of sorts. Click the arrows at either end of the bar to move to different parts of your quarantined message list based on date, or simply click the bar itself to jump to a specific point.
You can limit the messages being displayed by using the "Filter" popup menu and "Pattern" field to search for a From address, message Subject, or message Content in the quarantine. After setting your search criteria, click "Apply Filter" to list only the messages that match.
To display a message in the list, click it. A window will appear with the contents of the message, allowing you to quickly determine whether the email is spam, without the risk of opening it in your email application.
As with the email summary, you'll notice links to the right of email message. These work as you'd expect:
- Deliver
- Delivers the selected message to your standard email inbox.
- Whitelist
- Adds the sender of selected message to your whitelist so all future emails from this sender are not blocked unless the message contains a virus or banned file type.
- Delete
- Removes the message entirely from the Spam Firewall. Deleted messages cannot be recovered.
Managing Messages in Bulk
One of the advantages of using the Spam Firewall interface directly is that you can work with messages in bulk. To the right of each message, you'll notice a checkbox - clicking the checkbox will select that message. You can select as many messages as you want at a time. To quickly select *all* the messages in the list, click the checkbox at the very top of the message list.
Once you've chosen the message you want to act on, you can deliver, whitelist, or delete the messages using the buttons at the very top of the list.
Improving Your Spam Filtering through Training
As you work with the Spam Firewall, you'll notice that it catches *alot* of spam, but there is still a certain amount that gets through. While there is no perfect solution for spam, you can greatly increase the reliability of the Spam Firewall by spending some time "training" the system.
When your account is first created, the Spam Firewall operates using system-wide rules for identifying spam. This works, but it isn't personalized for *your* spam. Each person, based on their interactions online, receives a varying amount and type of spam. What you consider spam, for example, another user might consider valuable information. To get the system to identify the type of spam that you are receiving, you'll need to spend time training it.
To train the Spam Firewall, you simply select messages in your quarantine using the checkboxes, then click the "Classify as Not Spam" or "Classify as Spam" buttons at the top of the Quarantine message list.
The Spam Firewall engine becomes more effective over time, but only with your help. The best way to improve your filtering is to spend time training.
Managing Blocked (Blacklisted) and Allowed (Whitelisted) Email Addresses
Sometimes, the easiest way to make sure that emails from your friends and coworkers gets to you and unwanted senders don't is to allow and block addresses specifically. By default, anyone you email on the CFAES system, as long as you use the "cfaes.osu.edu" address, will be automatically allowed. For external email or even email that comes from osu.edu, however, you may want to manage your allowed (Whitelisted) and blocked (Blacklisted) addresses manually.
- Whitelist
- A list of e-mail addresses or domains from which you always wish to receive messages. The only time the Spam Firewall filters a message from someone on your whitelist is when the message contains a virus or a disallowed attachment file extension.
- Blacklist
- A list of senders from whom you never want to receive messages. The Spam Firewall immediately discards messages from senders on your blacklist. These messages are not tagged or quarantined and cannot be recovered. The sender does not receive a notice that the message was deleted, and neither do you.
To work with your whitelist and blacklist, click the PREFERENCES tab at the top of your Spam Firewall Quarantine page. After a few seconds, the page will refresh. Look for the "Whitelist/Blacklist" link directly under the tabs at the top, and select it.
To add or remove entries from your lists, follow these steps:
- Open the Whitelist/Blacklist page, as directed above.
- To add an entry, type an e-mail address into the appropriate field, and click the corresponding Add button.
- To delete a whitelist or a blacklist entry, click the trash can icon next to the address.
Tips on specifying addresses
When adding addresses to your whitelist and blacklist, note the following tips:
- If you enter a full email address, such as johndoe@yahoo.com, just that address is specified. If you enter just a domain, such as yahoo.com, all addresses in that domain are specified.
- If you enter a domain such as barracudanetworks.com, all subdomains are also included, such as support.barracudanetworks.com and test.barracudanetworks.com.
- Mass mailings often come from domains that do not resemble the company’s web site name. For example, you may want to receive mailings from historybookclub.com, but you will find that this site sends out its mailing from the domain hbcfyi.com. Examine the From: address of an actual mailing that you are trying to whitelist or blacklist to determine what to enter.
Managing your User Preferences
The CFAES Spam Firewall provides several additional settings that you can use to customize your spam-filtering experience - such as changing your password, altering your quarantine notifications, or even disabling spam filtering altogether. As with the Whitelist/Blacklist settings, these are accessed from the PREFERENCES tab at the top of your Spam Firewall Quarantine.
Changing your Account Password
To change your account password, do the following:
- Log into the quarantine interface, then go to PREFERENCES-->Password.
- In the provided fields, enter your existing password and enter your new password twice.
- Click Save Changes when finished.
Note: Changing your password breaks the links in your existing quarantine summary reports so you cannot delete, deliver, or whitelist messages from those reports. New quarantine summary reports contain updated links that you can use the same as before. This has no effect on your CFAES Messaging System password.
Changing Your Spam Firewall Quarantine Settings
The following table describes the quarantine settings you can change from the PREFERENCES-->Quarantine Settings page.
- Enable Quarantine
- Whether the Spam Firewall quarantines your messages.
- If you select Yes, the Spam Firewall does not deliver quarantined messages to your general email inbox, but you can view these messages from the quarantine interface and quarantine summary reports.
- If you select No, all messages that would have been quarantined for you are delivered to your general email inbox with the subject line prefixed with “[QUAR]:”. The Spam Firewall administrator can modify this prefix.
- Notification Interval
- The frequency the Spam Firewall sends you quarantine summary reports. The default is daily. The system only sends quarantine summary reports when one or more of your emails have been quarantined.
- If you select Never, you can still view your quarantined messages from the quarantine interface, but you will not receive quarantine summary reports.
- Notification Address
- The email address the Spam Firewall should use to deliver your quarantine summary report. Leave this field blank to use the email address associated with your user account.
Enabling and Disabling Spam Scanning of your Email
If you do not want the CFAES Spam Firewall scanning your emails for spam content, you can disable spam filtering from the PREFERENCES-->Spam Settings page.
The following table describes the fields on the PREFERENCES-->Spam Settings page.
Setting Description
Spam Filter Enable/Disable
Enable Spam Filtering Select Yes for the Spam Firewall to scan your emails for spam. Select No to have all your messages delivered to you without being scanned for spam.
Barracuda Bayesian Learning
Reset Bayesian Database Click Reset to remove all of the Spam/Not Spam training that you have created on the CFAES Spam Firewall.
Bayesian Database Backup
Backup Bayesian Database Click Backup to download a copy of your spam training database to your local system. This backup copy can then be uploaded in the case you accidentally misclassify messages or experience other issues with your account. Restore Database Click Browse to select the backup file containing your spam training database, and then click Upload Now to load the settings to the Spam Firewall.
