What's New in SpamAssassin 3.0
Publish Date: Sep. 9, 2004

In the course of writing SpamAssassin for O'Reilly, author Alan Schwartz tested beta versions for the upcoming SpamAssassin 3.0.0 in order to cover any differences in the book. Here, Alan presents an overview of some of SA 3's newest, coolest features. Find out why he thinks mail administrators should strongly consider upgrading to SA 3 when it's released.

View all articles by Alan Schwartz.

SpamAssassin

Customer Reviews

It is about what is under the hood
2005-06-07 10:41:01 James Ko, CISSP-ISSAP GCIH
This is a book for anyone who wants to know what is under the hood. This books details what is behind the engine, its architecture and its learning system. While it is leaning more heavily in the mail transfer agent (MTA) side, it still offers a lot of tips to readers as to how one can use SpamAssassin to combat junk mail. The Autowhitelisting and Bayesian Filtering are a must for those who really want to know how to use the tool. This is what makes it different from other keyword based filtering. This would be a great book for those who run and maintain their own mailing server, because it has lots of details for sendmail, postfix, exim and qmail.
Although the author has a section on pop mail configuration, I would like to see more client configuration examples such as outlook express or Novell's evolution/Ximian, or kmail. This is because not everybody runs email server at home. Nonetheless, this is a great book for those who want to set up their own spam mail filters and get rid of those annoying junk mail. Additionally, the author provides a very detailed list of resources.

SpamAssassin
2005-05-18 07:52:50 Echo
As in all things O'Reilly, a great book. I think that the section on custom rules could be beefed up and clarified a bit. Could also benefit from a page or two discussing regexp.

Media Reviews

"...this is a great book for those who want to set up their own spam mail filters and get rid of that annoying junk mail."
--James Ko, Amazon.com Review, June 2005

"[SpamAssassin] can be arcane. Powerful, but arcane. And, when it comes to publishing books about powerful, but arcane products, O'Reilly tends to get it right. They did as well with this one. If you need to manage or set up SpamAssassin, then SpamAssassin is your book."
--David Giwirtz, OutlookPower.com, February 2005

"...Schwartz's SpamAssassin is the item of choice for anyon who would customize its rules, create new rules, and take full advantage of SpamAssassin's advanced features..."
--Bookwatch, February 2005

"An essential resource for anyone responsible for providing spam protection at server level, and a fascinating read for those with an interest in understanding the problem."
--Major Keary, PC Update, December 2004

"This is easily one of the most clearly written and understandable books on configuring the software that I have read. SpamAssassin is highly recommended for anyone on a Unix-like system who is considering using the program as a spam control solution"
--Harold McFarland, Midwest Book Review, November 2004

"It's a good thing we new have this book to supplement SpamAssassin's sometimes lacking online documentation...This is an indispensable book for anybody who wants heavy-duty spam-filtering on their e-mail, from corporate sysadmins to technically savvy individuals who run their own mail servers."
--Netsurfer Digest, August 2004 (10:31)

Practical UNIX and Internet Security

Customer Reviews

Practical Unix & Internet Security, 3rd Edition Review
2003-08-21 07:11:32 Charles McColm
At just under 1,000 pages the 3rd edition of Practical Unix & Internet Security might look intimidating on the shelf, but a quick glance through the pages reveals that it is both practical and entertaining. With Slammer and Blaster making their way into the news it seemed like a good time to brush up on security. Already considered a classic reference, the 3rd edition of Practical Unix & Internet Security provides extensive updated information about topics like PAM (Pluggable Authentication Modules), LDAP, forensics, intrusion detection, wireless devices, and cryptography.

Practical Unix & Internet Security is divided up into six sections:

The first sections covers the basics of computer security, tracing the history of Unix and security, as well as providing details of what should be in a good security policy.

The second section covers the building blocks of security, authentication, users and groups, filesystems, cryptography, physical security for servers, and personnel security.

Network and Internet security are focused on in the third section with emphasis on modems and dialup security, TCP/IP networks, securing TCP and UDP services, Sun RPC, NIS, Kerberos, LDAP, NFS, SAMBA, and finishing up with a chapter dedicated to secure programming techniques.

Day to day operations are the focus of the fourth section. Keeping up to date, making backups, defending accounts, using integrity checking tools, and auditing, logging, and forensics are all expanded upon in detail over 5 chapters.

The fifth section rounds off the main part of the book by describing how to handle security incidents. Special focus is given to discovering a break-in, protecting against programmed threats, Denial of Service Attacks (& DDoS), legal options, and a chapter on who you can trust.

The Appendixes make up the sixth and final section. Not a spot is wasted in the appendixes which begin with a Unix security checklist, and then outline Unix processes, provide both extensive paper and electronic resources, and conclude with a sub-section on security organizations.

Among the topics I found most interesting were: Access Control Lists (ACL), Pluggable Authentication Modules (PAM), the section about 128-bit keys and dictionary-based passwords, connection laundering, honeypots, the false syslog example, and the example detailing a call to Microsoft's anti-piracy help line. The real-life examples scattered throughout Practical Unix & Internet Security keep the security sections from seeming overwhelming. This is one of the few books that I've found ever chapter of the appendix useful, so don't overlook them as simple reference pages.

Normally one-liners are reserved for movie discussions but for those who've already delved into Practical Unix & Internet Security here are a few of my favorite one-liners:

“...we do believe that making files readable and writable by everyone leads to many evil deeds.” - talking about the octal mode 666.

“Humidity is your computer's friend.” - just before static discharge kills your entire system.

“Beware of Key Employees.” - warning against making one person so key that their departure could cause your company irreparable harm.

“You mean, you don't really have a copy? [of Windows 98]” - the last part of a conversation with Microsoft's Anti-Piracy line. The company which called Microsoft's was tracing some intruders who had uploaded a copy of Windows 98 to the company's web site and was using the site to peddle warez. Microsoft was just about to launch Windows 98. The example shows just how clueless some help desks can be.

There are a few spelling mistakes and grammatical flaws but not enough to take away from the bulk of the information and no glaring omissions. UUCP coverage was dumped because UUCP simply is not a practical anymore now that more advanced alternatives like sendmail exist. I started glazing over material by the middle of the NIS chapter but it probably had more to do with the fact that I was thinking about the other 400 or so pages I had to read before I finished the main section of the book rather than the topic itself.

One of the great things about Practical Unix & Internet Security is that it is appropriate for a wide audience. There is relevant material for system administrators, security, company decision makers, even the guy sitting at the accounting terminal. Despite its massive size Practical Unix & Internet Security is entertaining enough to be read cover to cover. (It's good for the arm muscles too) Though it is easy to read beginners should probably reread their system manual before plunging headlong into this book. All in all Practical Unix & Internet Security continues to be one of those must have books for any Linux user.

Media Reviews

"'Practical Unix & Internet Security, Third Edition'...is a classic that, like the proverbial farmer, is outstanding in it's field...'Practical Unix & Internet Security' remains the one-volume complete introduction to the basic issues of UNIX security...while profoundly technical and highly detailed, [this book] possesses a viewpoint well above the technical horizon...If you're in charge of security for any online UNIX system or systems, go to http://www.oreilly.com/catalog/puis3/inx.html and read the table of contents. You'll probably discover you could benefit from reading this uniquely useful and comprehensive volume that only improves with age."
--Jack Woehr, C/C++ Users Journal, February 2004

"Written by the team that defined the classic approaches to security...this comprehensive 1,000-page book provides the background, tools and suggestions from administrations needed to understand Unix and Internet security. The latest edition squeezes in much more information than the second. I particularly liked the detailed coverage of Mac OS X, which I haven't seen anywhere else. It's a worthy update."
--Vince Tuesday, "Computerworld," November 2003

"['Practical UNIX & Internet Security, Third Edition'] updates and revises this comprehensive classic for beginning to advanced administrators, with hands-on, applicable advice for securing UNIX and UNIX-like networks. While all examples are UNIX-specific, the underlying explanations of network security issues are useful overall. Its logical organization and clear explanations make it a good reference for larger libraries."
--Rachel Singer Gordon, Library Journal, October 1, 2003

"This is a solid update to an already solid book. New topics include LDAP, Samba,wireless, intrusion detection, Mac OS X, and much more."
--Peter Baer Galvin, "Sys Admin," July 2003

"A quarter of a million people have found earlier editions of this book useful, or at least that's what the blurb of this book would have us believe. Quite frankly, I wouldn't be surprised if that were a conservative estimate...If you want a really hands-on guide about your computer, and aren't afraid of having to really get into a great deal of depth, then 'Practical Unix & Internet Security' is a good read, and a great reference."
--Paul Hudson, "Linux Format," July 2003

"The 'practical' in the title is just that--this is a great book for working-stiff sysadmins who want the script kiddies and attackers to stay out of their systems."
--Rick Wayne, "Software Development," June 2003

"I especially like this book's treatment of how to handle security incidents, which are going to occur no matter how careful you are."
--Peter Coffee, eWeek, March 31, 2003

"'Practical Unix & Internet Security' is an excellent reference for those who need a starting point for developing security awareness as well as experienced administrators."
--Mack Lundy, Williamsburg Macromedia User Group, May 19, 2003
http://fsweb.wm.edu/wmmug/reviews/output.cfm?id=157

"This is a welcome update of what has become the definitive reference on securing real Unix systems, and more. The authors once again show that security can be achieved only with a sufficient understanding of how things work. If you run a Unix or Unix-like system, then you need this book."
--Wietse Venema, Author of TCP Wrappers, SATAN, Postfix

"When the first edition was published, this work became an instant classic. Indeed, it so thoroughly flattened the competition that since then, no book of real substance has come out covering the same territory. Paradoxically to some, host security is not only relevant, but actually more important in this age of networking, and this third edition is by far the best of its class, covering all the basics needed to both better understand security and secure your systems."
--Dan Farmer, Security Researcher

"Buy this book and save on aspirin."
--Cliff Stoll, Author of The Cuckoo's Egg and Silicon Snake Oil

"This is exactly the type of practical, easy to follow book that system administrators need to stay one step ahead of the system crackers --if you have time to read only one security book, this should be it."
--Kevin J. Ziese, Captain, United States Air Force; Chief, Countermeasures Development, AF Information Warfare Center

"The previous edition... was one of the first to seriously address the issues of security in a networked UNIX environment; with the explosive growth of the Internet since that time, plus the book's expanded coverage of cryptography, tools, new services, and protocols, the second edition will be an important part of any system administrator's bookshelf."
--Alec Muffett, Network Security Consultant and Author of the Crack Program

"This revised edition...ably chronicles the changing security world of the Internet, with a greatly increased emphasis on network security and firewalls. If you could only purchase one book on Internet security, this is the one you'd want."
--Dan Farmer, Author of the SATAN and COPS Programs

Reviews From Previous Edition

"If you're a novice at computer security and want to learn, get this book and set aside time to read some of it every day. The bookmark will move slowly, but keep moving it. If you're already an expert, get this book and keep it at hand as a reference--and read a chapter a month, just to remind yourself of things you've forgotten."
--Jennifer Vesperman, linuxchix.org

"If you know nothing about Linux security, and only have time for one book you should start with 'Practical Unix and Internet Security.' It's a fat book, but its accessible, and it gives you a solid grounding in the basics."
--Charlie Stross, Linux Format, May 2002

"If you're a TCP/IP network administrator, these three books published by O'Reilly on networking {'DNS & BIND;' 'TCP/IP Network Administration;' 'Practical Unix & Internet Security'} are indispensable. These three guides are essential to managing a TCP/IP Network."
--http://it-enquirer.com, March 2002

Managing Mailing Lists

Customer Reviews

Managing Mailing Lists Review
1998-04-09 00:00:00 Jacob Haller


The easiest thing to do after you read a reference book
is complain, so let me start by saying that I think that
this book is quite well-written and would be a good
resource for anyone wanting to get started using a free
mailing list server on a Unix machine.

That being said, as an experienced LISTSERV maintainer, I
didn't learn much new. (Since I generally only looked at
the LISTSERV and general material, that's mainly what I'll
be talking about.) I'll mainly be using the book to loan
to people who want to learn more, and I'll definately quote
some of the material in the handouts I give to new
listowners.

A couple of gripes: It wasn't clear to me before I got the
book that it would cover LISTSERV _Lite_, not LISTSERV
Classic. It's an understandable decision to make since
Lite is free, but this could have been made clearer on the
cover.

Another issue is that this book was Unix-only, which I
also didn't realize until the book arrived. I had
assumed that it would give some coverage to the different
platforms, but (although it mentioned which of the mailing
list packages were available for other platforms) stuff
like installation instructions, etc. was all for Unix
versions of the products. Again, I don't have a gripe
with that decision, but I would have liked to have known
about that before I got the book. (Now someone will point
me to a place in the book's description that made that
clear, I'm sure.)

But all-in-all I liked the discussion of mail protocals,
the sort of things you should be thinking of when you
set up a mailing list server or create a mailing list,
the comparison of the different packages, and the
information on LISTSERV Lite, and I'll definately be
loaning this book to the LISTSERV-administrator-in-
training that I'm supposed to be bringing up to speed.

Media Reviews

"…gave me a solid foundation in several major mail list programs."--Daniel Fishman, Database Trends and Applications, February 2001

"You will be hard pressed to find a book that can compete with Alan Schwartz'
Managing Mailing Lists in the field it covers." --Professional Webmaster, December 2000

"Nothing fancy here, just accurate information in a well-written book. For all collections." --Thomas Gillespie, Library Journal, July 1998

"If you're ready for the nitty-gritty of administering a mailing list, Schwartz's Managing Mailing Lists is a comprehensive resource." --Elizabeth Lewis, amazon.com

"I have to speak up here because this new O'Reilly book (Managing Mailing Lists) recently saved my butt. I was installing majordomo 1.94.4 on an older SCO Unix® machine and my test list kept giving me "permission denied" errors. I've installed majordomo quite a few times, but I'd tried all my tricks and was still stumped. I swallowed my pride, reached for this book, and had my list running within a few minutes." --Jim Johnson, Journal of Open Computing

"A great book! This book covers both server and list administration for Listproc, Majordomo, SmartList, and LISTSERV Lite. It starts of by covering the basics of an email message and a mailing list, and what mailing list software does. It even covers how you can do some basic mailing list functions with sendmail without using an MLM (Mailing List Manager). While the software this book covers are mostly UNIX-specific, this book is a must-have for anyone wanting to install and run mailing list management software. In one book you can see the different features of the leading UNIX-based MLM's, and get an honest appraisal of their relative strengths and weaknesses. You may have already have decided on one MLM, but this book may change your mind!

"Not just for server administrators, this book covers all the issues with respect to managing a mailing list. Learn about how to run a moderated list, or how to offer a digested version of your list. This book is also well laid out -- with multiple 'layers'. As you read on things are covered in greater detail. The last chapters are an in-depth reference for the commands and features of each MLM covered."

--A book review, by David Barr, http://www.cis.ohio-state.edu/~barr/managing-maillist-review.html

"Although mailing lists are hardly one of the more glamorous aspects of Internet communications, they remain one of the most useful, effective, and popular methods for group discussions. Many organizations and businesses use them to keep in touch with members and customers. But while mailing lists are simple to use, they can be confusing for newcomers to run.

This comprehensive guide is for anyone who wants to run or manage a mailing list, including the busy system administrator who needs to ensure that user-owned mailing lists run as trouble-free as possible. Schwartz concentrates on UNIX systems and software because they are well proven, stable, and free (plus, most mailing lists are based in UNIX systems). Discussions of UNIX systems and commands can be dry, but Schwartz is thoughtful enough to interject some humorous examples. He covers the technicalities of list operation, including the selection and use of all the leading software. He also goes into the pros and cons of the various strategic questions that list managers must face, such as whether or not a list should be moderated or whether or not to allow nonsubscribers to post to a list. This book will save any new list manager a great deal of time and trouble.

--a book review, by Elizabeth Lewis http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/156592259X/002-6548871-9997267

Stopping Spam

Customer Reviews

Stopping Spam Review
2001-04-05 00:58:44 Fred Jones
i just bought "stopping spam" this afternoon...(4/4/2001)

in many ways i am a "newbie"...

i got "stopping spam" at one of the big book chains..

because it was close to home,

i was there looking for another book which i never found,

anyways, i just started subscriping to various "list"

and i wanted to know how to get off...

before i got on...

i was worried with the copyright date of "october '98,

per Moore's law that was "forever ago"...

thanks for the "erata" pages on the "o'reilly" site...

(i had visited your site before buying the book,

and therefore, figured it would be there.. Tx

Stopping Spam Review
2001-01-01 09:05:41 Steven Jackson
Don't let the publication date scare you off. This book is timeless in its applicability. It covers all types of spam very nicely, and is acutely aware of the potential speech-related issues content-based filtering can bring about.

This book offers many options for combatting spam on the user and system levels, and makes sure to present the best way to stop spam: by teaching responsible system administration and shutting down open mail relays and public NNTP servers that allow posting.

I have had to admin mail and news servers for clients in the past, and I personally receive about 30 pieces of unwanted email daily. I've been particularly interested in the Procmail-based "friendly sender database", and the book presents the solution in a clear, concise fashion.

If you're tired of receiving more spam than real email, or having to really look hard for high quality, on topic postings in your newsgroups, then I strongly recommend this book.

Stopping Spam Review
1998-06-23 00:00:00 Karl A. Krueger


"This book describes spam -- unwanted email messages and
inappropriate news articles..."

This is a problem. On USENET, at least, a critical part of
the spam argument has been to define "spam". Because of the
undesirability of content-based censorship, spam on USENET
is not generally defined as "inappropriate news articles"
but rather as articles which are excessively multiply-
posted, *regardless of content*. (See the FAQs for
news.admin.net-abuse.usenet, among other places.)

To ignore this consensus is unlike O'Reilly.

Media Reviews

"A good read and a useful resource for the PC user."
--Computer Shopper, April 2002

" a valuable book on an important subject."
--Ken Fermoyle, PC Clubhouse News, January 2001

"an excellent tutorial on tracing and responding to Spam"
--Scott Atwood in San Jose Mercury News, Dec 29, 2000

"This book is much more than the fluff piece I expected. They've done an excellent job of retelling the history of span, and it makes quite entertaining reading...It's taking a long time, but I think the spam situation is going to get better. If you buy this entertaining and fact-filled book, you can learn how to help make that happen."
--Ron Burke, Window Developers Journal, April 1999

"After three years of get-rich-quick books on how to send spam, a definitve work on its deterrence is long overdue. So much so that while I napped on a shuttle flight from Silicon Valley to Redmond, my copy of 'Stopping Spam' disappeard from the seat next to me."
--Paul Boutin, Wired, March 1999

"This well-researched, clearly written, and carefully planned book belongs on the reference shelf of those with general duties as well as those who handle computer crimes."
--Ronald L. Mendell, Security Management, March 1999

"If you are tired of having useless emails fill up your mailbox, or you are no longer able to find on-topic postings in once-helpful newsgroups, then this book will be useful to you ... if your email or newsgroup diet consists of too much spam, this will help you reduce your intake and make the Net much leaner as well."
--Keith Schengili-Roberts, Computer Paper, February 1999

"This book is enjoyable to read and gives you an important weapon in your battle against spammers."
--Link-UP, February 1999

"'Stopping Spam' may be the most liberating work since the Magna Carta"
--The Marcus Letter, December 1998

"The first comprehensive book dealing with the problem of Spam. This book explains the whole range of options available to fight back against spam."
--Suzanne Smith, San Diego Union-Tribune, December 8, 1998

"'Stopping Spam' is an excellent resource, suitable for the new user or the experienced admin. It covers the history of spam fighting as well as the latest anti-spam techniques. Technical issues are covered in depth, yet the reading is easy. In short, 'Stopping Spam' should be read by anyone who uses email, Usenet, or the World Wide Web."
--Cancelmoose, Author of NoCeM anti-spam software

"The authors of 'Stopping Spam' are nothing short of arms merchants, supplying long-needed defensive weapons to be used in the war against unsolicited bulk email. This book offers something for everyone--quite approachable by novices, yet holding some surprised for experts."
--Paul Vixie, Creator of the Mail Abuse Prevention System RealTime Blackhold List (MAPS RBL)

"THERE'S A new bible for Internet users: 'Stopping Spam' by Alan Schwartz and Simson Garfinkel.You're going to love it. If you've been on the Net for longer than a month or two, you know the heartache of spam. Useless, unsolicited messages promising everything from hot sex on-line to a million dollars in 10 days pile up in your mailbox. Responding to them just gets you more junk mail; the return addresses are often bogus.

I haven't written about spam in a long time, not because you don't ask about it constantly but because I despaired of being able to provide you with suggestions that might make an actual dent in the E-trash.

After 20 minutes of reading this book, I had a dozen pages marked for later use. After two hours, I quit marking them; they're ALL that good. 'Stopping Spam' (O'Reilly, $19.95, www.oreilly.com or 1-800-998-9938, 9-8 weekdays) came out in October, but it's still a great overview of how bulk E-mail and news group postings work, how this horrible trend got started and what you can do about it.

Schwartz and Garfinkel have a clear, entertaining writing style that all of us can read, regardless of our technical experience.

The advice runs from basic to highly esoteric, including a chapter for people who run E-mail systems. Still, you'll never have problems following along, thanks to careful explanations of terms and some great real-life analogies.

For instance, the authors compare step-by-step the dialogue that two computers have passing along E-mail on the Net to the dialogue you have when you call up a restaurant to make a reservation.

The book begins by detailing why spam is such a huge problem. It's more than an annoyance; it's a threat to the usefulness of the Internet and a drain on the resources of every service provider.

Spam was first predicted by an Internet pioneer in 1975, long before most of us were aware the Net existed. His descriptions of how unwanted messages would annoy were grim but accurate.

The book details several high-profile early spams. (Remember the 'I have a great collection of child pornography' messages? Or the lawyers who advertised their representation in the green card lottery on every news group on the Net? Consider yourself lucky if you don't.)

In plain English, the book tells how to avoid and eliminate E-mail and news group spam.

The suggestions include how to protect your E-mail address from getting out in the first place, how to tweak your E-mail filters to shunt aside incoming spam and how to use spam bait pages to add to spammers' burdens.

The authors talk about how to find out where the message really came from and how to complain effectively to the companies that give the spammer Internet access. (Spamming violates most Internet providers' contracts with their customers, so complaining can make the bulk mail stop coming.)

Finally, they go over software that may help you de-spam, most of which is cheap or free.

Schwartz and Garfinkel wrap up by considering long-term solutions to spam, from Net community action to legislation.

The bad news is that getting rid of spam isn't easy, and this book doesn't gloss over the difficulty. The good news is that this book contains the tools to drastically cut down on the unwanted mail or postings you have to read."
--By Heather Newman, Detroit Fress Press, May 1999, http://www.freep.com

"'Stopping Spam' is O'Reilly's newest book, which exclusively covers the topic of spam, or unwanted e-mails and postings to Usenet.

It's written for anyone at any skill level - if you're a novice, you might enjoy reading about some more infamous spammers of the past, like Jeff Slaton or Canter and Siegel aka "The Greencard Spammers". If you're more at the intermediate level, you'll find the sections on how to safeguard your e-mail address and filter your e-mail especially valuable. If you're a system administrator, you'll find tips for securing your mail and news servers against unauthorized use by spammers. There's even a section for ISPs which covers suggestions for creating an iron-clad Acceptable Use Policy (AUP) to keep the spammers away from your system and stop the trouble before it starts.

Clearly, whether you're a new user on the Internet or an administrator who remembers the good old spam free days of the past, I would highly recommend reading this book for the hard facts on spam and the anti-spam resources that it presents."
--Doug Muth, creator of CAUCE.org

"If unwanted advertising is filling your e-mail and clogging up your favorite newsgroups, or if you're a system administrator plagued by spammers, you'll love this book."
--Elizabeth Lewis, amazon.com

"It's a shame that such a book is needed, but the $19.95 for the softcover tome could be money well spent if it lessens your aggravation and wasting of time."
--Dr. Michael W. Ecker, Recreational & Educational Computing, Dec 1998

"an excellent treatment of the subject"
--Jason Levitt, Information Week, Oct 19, 1998

"Spam is not something we can eliminate simply by clicking on "delete." It poses a serious problem for the cyberspace community, one we should all recognize and work to combat. The best weapon to help in the fight I've found so far is a new book, 'Stopping Spam,' from O'Reilly & Associates (www.oreilly.com). Authors Alan Schwartz and Simson Garfinkel have done an excellent job of explaining how and why spam is a major headache. More important, they describe practical ways in which individuals and organizations can combat this insidious menace. All in all, this is a valuable book on an important subject. Well written, it includes technical material explained in such a way that you don't need a degree in computer science to get the message, but neither is it "Spam for Dummies." It will repay the thoughtful reader big dividends in useful information. I recommend it for anyone who wants to learn more about spam and Internet messaging in general."
--Ken Fermoyle

"The release of 'Stopping Spam' is a significant milestone in the long effort to have the problems of junk email and Usenet posts conclusively put to rest. Paul Vixie calls the authors of 'Stopping Spam' 'nothing short of arms merchants, supplying long-needed weapons to be used in the war against unsolicited bulk email.' I won't argue. Email and Usenet spam are serious, complex, difficult issues. Understanding them, and dealing with them effectively, requires a journey into the fundaments of the net, both technical and societal.
'Stopping Spam' accomplishes this task with a forthright clarity that a broad range of readers should find useful.

It is significant to note that the authors and publisher of 'Stopping Spam' recognize the dynamic nature of the spam beast; the authors, along with the book's editor, Debby Russell, are going to continue to privide updated information via the web. The URL for the web site is: http://stopspam.oreilly.com

'Stopping Spam' covers the subject matter thoroughly. Beginning with 'What's Spam and What's the Problem', it goes into a short history of the phenomenon, concluding with the current state of affairs. It moves on to include tips on avoiding junk email and unwanted Usenet posts, how to deal with it once you've received it, how to complain, and how to take measures to get less of it in the future. Administrators and ISPs are treated to examples of program code and AUP language. The book closes with a chapter titled, 'Community Action', which discusses newsgroups, mailing lists, UDP/IDP, and legal doings. The Appendices list sources for tools and information and a 'Cyber Promotions Timeline'.

I personally found only one bone to pick of any significance. The book mentions 'hacker attacks' and 'anti-spam vigilantes' in several places, generally in a negative light. The authors fail to balance the negatively slanted information with sufficient mention of the countless honorable, honest good deeds done by so many folks...in the name of ending net abuse...

[This is a] truly minor complaint in the grander scheme, and should not detract anyone from recommending this book to others. The overall viewpoint of 'Stopping Spam' is unequivocally against those net abuses, and that is far more important than the minutiae of certain events....

'Stopping Spam' gets a thumbs up from this reviewer, and I recommend it to anyone interested in furthering their knowledge of the issues of email and Usenet spam."
--WD Baseley, posted on news.admin.net-abuse.email and comp.org.cauce