Filtering system deletes unwanted e-mail

Front Range Internet’s MailArmory product cuts the spam

FORT COLLINS — Imagine how nice it would be if your postal carrier knew you so well that he would sort through your mail and throw out everything you don’t want.

Customers of Front Range Internet Inc. have an online “mailman” doing just that.

In May, FRII launched MailArmory, a filter that catches spam (unsolicited e-mail) before it reaches its destination. MailArmory uses a point-based system to filter spam e-mail. Complex mathematical calculations determine a message’s likelihood of being spam and assign a rating to each message. This is compared against individual user settings to determine whether the message should be delivered as normal or flagged as spam. MailArmory keeps unwanted messages from being delivered, decreasing the load on mail servers and allowing end users to concentrate on their work rather than reviewing spam.

“Spam continues to increase as Internet use grows,´ said Andy Neely, vice president of technical operations for Front Range Internet. “When we started looking for a system to filter spam for our own customers, we found existing services to be lacking in many areas.

“We felt that we could build a better mousetrap.”

In Neely’s opinion, the area where current software was lacking the most was in the amount of spam it was catching.

“When we looked at the other products out there, the total percentage of spam being captured was 50 to 90 percent,” he said. “Call it gross arrogance, or what have you, but we thought we could do better than that.”

And they have. The MailArmory system captures about 95 percent of spam. In addition, the system offers more features and control to end users than other programs on the market. Users have the option of setting how aggressively they want their e-mail filtered. The system quarantines spam messages in a “Captured Mail” box accessible through a Web interface. Users may review messages delivered there or allow them to auto delete after a specified time period. For those running mail servers, they may choose to have each spam message sent to the “Captured Mail” or passed to their server with an added tag in the message header identifying it as spam. This system allows Internet service providers and businesses to save money by keeping spam from hitting their mail servers. MailArmory runs independently on redundant servers outside the customer’s facility so there is no need for companies to install and manage software on their own.

Some might worry that the system is “too effective” and might delete wanted mail. But Neely said every precaution has been taken to avoid throwing the baby out with the bathwater.

“It’s essentially a give-take situation,” he said. “If your limit is set aggressively, you can expect to lose a little legitimate mail.

“Those who want to make sure they don’t lose any legitimate mail just use a lower setting. Even at an ‘eight’ it’s highly unlikely the user would lose anything legit.”

The average FRII customer chooses a midrange setting of “five.” Neely has his own MailArmory level at “eight.”

“I was receiving a high volume of spam, around 20 to 30 messages a day,” he said. “Now I get maybe five a month.”

Those concerned about missing legitimate mail can easily access their captured mail box through FRII’s Web site and “release” any captured mail they are interested in.

At the core of MailArmory is a scoring system that runs 450 tests on each message. Each spam-like characteristic, for example containing an unsubscribed mail address, adds a certain amount to the message score. Those messages scoring over the level set by the customer are sent to the captured mailbox.

“The end result is a direct reflection of the user’s preference, of their spam threshold,” Neely said.

MailArmory is the latest innovation from an innovative company. Founded in August of 1995 by Bill Ward and his son, Brad, the company’s performance since its inception has proven their decision to be an advantageous one — FRII went from a startup to a company producing $3 million in revenues in just five years.

The FRII system — which provides all of the same services as well-known nationwide ISPs — has enabled the company to permeate the regional community. Backed by the guarantee of better, more reliable customer service and customized business solutions, FRII has reached out to both residential and business Internet users.

Though initially the majority of the company’s revenues came from residential users, this trend has shifted as more and more businesses have signed on with FRII. FRII’s rapid growth received a boost in May 2000 when the company acquired the assets of Verinet Communications, formerly a separate local Fort Collins ISP.

In merging with Verinet, FRII not only expanded its customer base, but also eliminated one of its major local competitors. Another significant event occurred in 2000 when FRII became involved in developing an ISP pilot project for an Internet weather warning system similar to those used on televisions. The project, sponsored by the ISP Business Forum and the National Telecommunication and Information Administration, also involved the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.

As for the company’s latest innovation, plans are already drafted for a second and third generation of the MailArmory service. The second version will include virus and attachment filtering. The third version is intended to include content-based filtering.

MailArmory is so successful the product is separating from FRII to become its own entity, with FRII as its first customer. The system has other users but hasn’t been marketed yet. The product will be marketed once the second version is complete, later this month or next month.

“Our feedback so far has been completely positive,” Neely said. “We have every reason to believe this product will continue to be well-received.”

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