Cloudmark Introduces Policy-based Control of Unwanted Email
Added Intelligence Lets Service Providers Screen by Type of Mail, Track Record
SAN FRANCISCO, August 16, 2006 – With the percentage of abusive messages far exceeding 90% of all email, Cloudmark is introducing new intelligence that gives service providers more granular insight and control as various types of abusive messages attempt to enter and exit their networks. New "Content Disposition" techniques distinguish between spam, phishing scams, viruses, newsletters and other potentially unwanted email to enable precise policies and accommodate user preferences. Additionally, information reported by Cloudmark's global network of 100M+ protected mailboxes will allow providers to block email from known offenders from exiting and entering their networks. Cloudmark uniquely offers this level of end-to-end messaging security on a single platform, Cloudmark Authority.
"With the volume of email traffic now above 100 billion messages per day, the only way to impose order on the vast majority of abusive mail is with end-to-end intelligence from the sender to the recipient and their respective service providers," says Vipul Ved Prakash, founder and Chief Scientist at Cloudmark. "More visibility into what types of mail is being handled, and the history and preferences of those sending and receiving it can help block more bad mail at the network level, a feat which not only saves service providers dollars, but time, reputation and customer loyalty."
Cloudmark's newly available "Content Disposition" technology enables email providers to identify and create more precise policies to address various forms of messaging abuse at wire speed. Automated network responses can be implemented, such as the deletion of known viruses, to decrease the overall volume of bad mail delivered. Phishing attacks, more targeted and shorter in duration than other messaging threats, can be blocked more aggressively than messages that are merely annoying. Additionally, individual subscriber preferences can be accommodated, as for gray mail like newsletters, which can be delivered to those who wish to receive them or blocked by subscribers who do not want to receive them.
Other inbound/outbound filtering capabilities enabling more granular and proactive control leverage sender history and validation of abusive messaging to deny malicious attacks from entering and exiting service provider networks. Monitoring abusive activity by sender marks a key first step in deterring hijacking of legitimate enterprise networks. With growing messaging abuse burdening infrastructure and compromising user and provider credibility, Cloudmark analytics on activity by IP address combined with its fingerprinting technology can be used to flag offenders as new attacks attempt to gain or leave service provider networks. Outbound filtering conserves bandwidth and helps detect "zombies" on provider networks while inbound filtering increases accuracy and reduces "false positives," a main cause of subscriber complaints.
Renowned for industry-leading speed and accuracy, Cloudmark continues to leverage intelligence from the network edge to the desktop. Cloudmark's Authority solutions are the first messaging security solutions to give service providers end-to-end security in one platform. Says Prakash, "The intelligence we're introducing into the messaging security process will greatly empower service providers to stay a step ahead of new attacks without the costly, cumbersome process of 'chasing' new threats with endless creation of new rules, as with legacy platforms. By starting to track and actually preempt attacks, providers can not only gain control but increase accuracy and profitability."
About Cloudmark Authority:
Cloudmark's carrier-class solution provides an immediate improvement in filtering performance and lowered resource utilization—allowing operations staff to be more productive and to achieve the industry's lowest total cost of ownership. Multi-tiered protection against spam and phishing messages enables varied filtering technologies to be deployed at different points in the network, configured according to each service provider's unique topology and policy objectives. More than 50 wireline and wireless carriers have chosen Cloudmark as their core anti-abuse solution while dozens more trial Authority every day.
About Cloudmark
Cloudmark builds messaging security software that protects communications service provider networks and their subscribers against the widest range of messaging threats. Only Cloudmark Security Platform™ delivers instant security and control across diverse messaging environments, enabling communications service providers to create a safe user experience, protect revenue and safeguard their brand, while streamlining infrastructure and reducing operational costs. Cloudmark's patented solutions protect more than 120 tier-one customers worldwide, including AT&T, Verizon, Swisscom, Comcast, Cox and NTT.