The Battle Against Spam

Spam is certainly one of the hot issues in e-mail services today. Last year we at AH Computer Services made spam filtering available to our web clients. We are making strong progress in eliminating unwanted e-mail through this service.  Our spam filter can catch as much as 95% of your unwanted mail.

Ferris Research, a market and technology research firm specializing in messaging and collaboration, estimates that unsolicited and unwanted e-mail [aka spam] cost U.S. businesses over $10 billion in 2003.

Our filtering services utilize several processes to capture as much unsolicited mail as possible.  We apply Bayesian rules--utilizing keywords and phrases that often appear in mass mailings--to calculate whether an e-mail is likely to be spam. In a second phase we trace e-mail return addresses to determine whether they are valid (does the reply address come from the same domain as the originating sender or is the e-mail address listed on one of the blacklists). Finally, we test the content for offensive language and block these e-mails.

If you use the internet even weekly, chances are your e-mail address has been or soon will be captured by the many unethical businesses online that collect and sell e-mail addresses. Although legislators are trying to pass laws that will limit spam, few experts believe this approach will be effective because much of this e-mail is first generated overseas where US law is not applicable.

VIRTUAL OFFICE LETS YOU TAKE YOUR FILES ON THE ROAD.

You know the scenarios:

•  You’re out of town on business or overseas on vacation
  

•  You’re at the office, but the file you need is still on your home PC where you modified it last night.
  

• Your top sales person saves all of their contacts on their laptop.  

     The answer to each of these problems is Desk Now, a virtual office where you can store common company contacts, upload files for use at another location, post notes to your employees and keep a shared calendar that everyone can view. 

The Virtual Office is compatible with Palm, Blackberry and other handheld PCs so that on-the-go office really is mobile.

Contact our office for a personal demonstration at 407-671-3557 or e-mail us at sales@ahcomputers.net. 

DOES YOUR WEBSITE PAY FOR ITSELF?

Is your website getting the attention it deserves? Is it working as hard as you are in the customer service market? 

 The methods for getting a top listing on any of the major search engines change constantly. Recent changes in search engine policy could have moved your "Top 10" site to the bottom or even off the list!

The first obstacle to overcome is getting listed at all. You can test this by going to any search engine and entering your full URL address in the search field. It will immediately reference any websites that are included where your URL appears.

But this doesn't guarantee your address will come up when someone searches by a keyword or phrase.  That trick is a combination of meta tags, page optimization, outbound and inbound links and other methods to increase popularity of your site.

We've been developing and fine tuning websites for 10 years. If you aren't getting the website business you need, we can help you get to the top.

Call us for a free 30-minute website review and consultation at 407-671-3557.  We'll show you how you can improve your search engine placement.

The Supreme Court just handed this question back to a Philadelphia District Court to determine if the Child Online Protection Act actually violates the first amendment right to free speech of porn website owners. 

While preventing open access to pornography websites may ultimately be deemed a violation of free speech, blocking its receipt at your home and office is not. Hackers, internet stalkers, identity thieves and other nefarious characters take aim at your PC everyday and it is your responsibility to take measures to prevent their access.  

There are literally dozens of software programs for the home user--like NetNanny and Realtime-Spy--that effectively monitor and block offensive websites at the PC level for $40 to $100 per computer.  New software is available to monitor chat rooms and instant messaging sessions and give you peace of mind about what PC and personal information is given out across the internet. 

There are also tools available for office networks that will track employees internet habits and block selected websites on a network-wide basis.  The cost of these software programs varies depending upon how large a network you have and how many PCs you need to protect.  

We will highlight additional resources in upcoming issues. To get additional information about the available monitoring products visit out website at http://www.ahcomputers.net or contact us directly at 407-671-3557.

While this debate over pornography is in the courtrooms today, the internet and open access will continue to be a hot topic in future congressional sessions. Let your voice be heard by contacting your congressmen and senators. 

Be sure to watch for future newsletters that include legal and congressional action on related  topics. 

Got a question we should address in a future newsletter?  e-mail me your idea at barbara@ahcomputers.net.