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Junk mail is a universal annoyance. It clogs our mail boxes with unsolicited, sometimes obnoxious messages that are a time waster if nothing else. No matter whether it's bulk rate pieces of paper or spam email, junk mail is junk.
Junk Spy is a valuable tool for detecting and filtering out junk email. Most email software products support the concept of filters which can be used to remove unwanted mail. Junk Spy does that and more, and has several advantages over the traditional email filter solution to junk mail.
Junk Spy's benefits include:
To effectively eliminate your junk email, Junk Spy sits between your email program and your mail server. When your mail program begins to retrieve your email, it connects to Junk Spy instead of your mail server. Junk Spy then connects to your mail server and starts to download your messages. As it retrieves the messages, Junk Spy evaluates them to identify potential junk.
Once Junk Spy finds a message it considers junk email, there are two options. The default is that the message header is flagged to indicate it's junk. You can use that header entry with your email program's filter capability to control what happens to it. You could delete it, move it to a specific folder, or take other action that your email program offers. If you don't want the message flagged, your other option is to have Junk Spy destroy the message completely. However, not all email programs can support this option and you do lose the flexibility of the filtering method. Consult the Getting Started guide for your email program for more information.
Messages that are not considered junk email are sent to your email program untouched.
Junk Spy has simple requirements:
Note: JunkSpy does not work with mail systems such as AOL which use their own private methods to retrieve mail. JunkSpy also does not work with "web-based" email systems that only allow you to view your mail via the web.
Let's get started. There are basically three things to do:
Junk Spy is quick and easy to install.
Junk Spy's TCP/IP Wizard is a handy tool to help make sure that your TCP/IP is optimally setup for Junk Spy. The Wizard will analyze your system and let you know what, if any, changes are needed. In most cases, the TCP/IP Wizard is able to make the changes for you if you so choose.
Once you're done with Junk Spy's TCP/IP Wizard, you'll be ready to configure your email program to work with Junk Spy.
Note that the TCP/IP Wizard is included in your Junk Spy folder as a separate function. That way you can use it at any time, not just during the installation and setup process. You'll find it can be useful if you make changes to your system which affect TCP/IP.
There are a few changes that must be made to your email program to make it work with Junk Spy. Setup instructions specific to the following email applications are included:
If your program isn't included in this list, there are general instructions for configuring email programs to work with Junk Spy which you should follow.
After installation and setup of your email program to work with Junk Spy, there's no need to reboot your system (except in the case of some changes made by the TCP/IP Wizard). You can start using Junk Spy right away.
The first time you start Junk Spy you'll be prompted for a license number and access code. Be sure to enter this information exactly because case and dashes are critical. If you don't have a license, you can run Junk Spy in demo mode which lets you try the product while limiting some of its functionality.
Look at the message area - it's the white area under the titlebar. You'll see a short informational report on the left and a status icon on the right. These give you information about what's happening with your email.
The text on the left side of the message area gives you a summary of Junk Spy's activities. Clicking in the message area changes the information that is displayed:
The status icon on the right indicates Junk Spy's current activity. When inactive, you'll see a snooze indicator; when active, the indicator varies with each stage of the junk mail detection process.
The Status Center lists information that you should be aware of, such as when an error condition occurred, when Junk Spy got its last dectector update, or when your license for the product expires. When Sundial Systems sends you news about Junk Spy, this is where you'll find it as well.
One other feature of the Status Center is the ability to control whether or not error messages are displayed. If you like knowing when Junk Spy encounters a problem, then check Display Popup Error Messages; if you'd rather not have the error messages displayed, then make sure this option is not checked.
If you want to see more information about an item in the Status Center, you can. All you need to do is to double-click on the item, or highlight it on the list and then click on the View button to display the relevant log or information dialog.
For example, if you are running Junk Spy without a license number - or if you have a temporary license as illustrated here - you'll be reminded of it in the Status Center. By highlighting the license message in the Status Center and pressing the View button, you'll get a dialog with your license status in which you can enter a new license number and access code if you choose.
When you are finished looking at or dealing with the information in the Status Center, you should press the OK button and you'll exit the dialog. On the other hand, if you want to leave the dialog but aren't done with the information in it, you can press the Close button. (This is the same as clicking on the close icon in the upper right
corner or double-clicking on the system menu icon in the upper left
corner.) Using Close rather than OK leaves the yellow color as a reminder to look again at the Status Center.
One of Junk Spy's important features is its ability to automatically receive and process junk detection updates via email. While you can disable this feature in the Update Settings if you prefer, it is the way Junk Spy stays up-to-date working for you to eliminate junk mail.
This service of automatic updates is available only to licensed users of Junk Spy, and is initially based on the contact information provided when the product was purchased. Updates will be sent periodically to keep Junk Spy's database of detectors current.
As part of the update service, licensed users also have access to the Junk Spy Detection Update Center. Information about it - and a password for it - is emailed shortly after purchase.
We strongly suggest that you change the password right away to something that is meaningful to you.
The Detection Update Center is the place to go if you need to change the email address that your Junk Spy updates are sent to. In addition, you'll see your personal update history and can have any updates you might have missed resent immediately, if necessary.
You might want to periodically look at the email Monitor. It shows you what Junk Spy's done for you.
It gives you the same information as the report indicators on the left in Junk Spy's
message area, but here they are all displayed together at the same time. In addition, the Monitor gives some specifics on your most recent message and your most recent junk message - which might be the same if the most recent message is junk mail.
Like the Status Center, the Monitor is a menu option. Right-click
on the message area to bring up the popup menu and select Monitor; or, you can access the option by clicking on the system menu icon in the upper left corner, selecting Junk Spy, and then Monitor.
As a shortcut, you can double-click on the message area to display the Monitor. Conversely, double-clicking on the message when the Monitor is open will cause it to close.
In general, that's all you need to do. One of the best things about Junk Spy is that it works without you doing anything. Because Junk Spy is driven by your email program, you'll rarely interact with it directly. Sit back and watch Junk Spy take care of junk mail for you.
But there may be times when you have a question or concern. You can see what other users have to say about it and/or you can contact Support Services for Junk Spy.
The Junk Spy user forum is about users helping users. It's a sharing of information, ideas, and questions between users such as yourself. The forum also helps keep you abreast of what's happening with Junk Spy, and is available to you two convenient ways.
You can access the Junk Spy newsgroup and/or sign-up to receive email messages on the Junk Spy website at www.JunkSpy.com/forum.html.
Sometimes junk mail gets through. It's unfortunate, but true.
In an ideal world, Junk Spy would catch every piece of junk mail that's sent to you, and that, indeed, is the goal. Toward that end, you can help by forwarding a message that should have been recognized as junk (but wasn't) to:
junk@JunkSpy.com.
The message will then automatically be entered into the Junk Spy Research Center's database of suspicious email.
Conversely, a message might be classified as junk when it shouldn't have been.
In order to correct such misidentification, the Junk Spy Research Center wants to know when that happens. You can help by forwarding the message that was incorrectly identified as junk to:
notjunk@JunkSpy.com.
This will help with the on-going analysis of what is and is not junk mail.
In addition, depending on the particular message and who it is from, you might want to create an exception to prevent this from happening again. Thus, this might be the right time to make use of Junk Spy's Exception Wizard. Its purpose is to help you create effective exceptions to Junk Spy's analysis so that you don't miss messages that you really want to get.
The quickest way to display the Junk Spy menu is to right-click on the message area. Alternatively, click on the system menu icon in the upper left corner and select Junk Spy.
Junk Spy's menu gives you options for:
What Is Junk Mail and What Isn't
Requirements
2. Getting Started: Installation and Setup
Installation
Junk Spy's TCP/IP Wizard
Configuring Your Email Program
3. Letting Junk Spy Work for You
Double click on the program object in the Junk Spy folder to start it. Alternatively, if you open an OS/2 command window, you can change to the Junk Spy directory and run the Junk Spy executable from the command line.
As you can see, Junk Spy takes up minimal space on your desktop. At the same time, everything you need is right there at your fingertips.
Junk Spy's Message Area
Cummulative activity is shown on the left.
Current activity is shown on the right.
Junk Spy is snoozing while waiting for incoming mail to process
a connection is being made with your mail server
your incoming messages are being checked
Junk Spy is getting mail
a message has been determined to be junk mail
a message has been identified as not being junk mail
a message generated by Junk Spy is being sent 
a message is being analyzed by external "blackhole" detectors 
an update to the filter data is being received and processed
you do not have an Internet connection, so Junk Spy is not attempting to retrieve and analyze mail
The Status Center Keeps You Informed
At the far left of the message area in Junk Spy you might see a yellow dot like this one. The dot let's you know there is news for you about the product or its installation in Junk Spy's Status Center.
Use the Junk Spy menu to look at the Status Center.
You can display the Junk Spy menu by right-clicking on the message area, or by clicking on the system menu icon in the upper left corner and then selecting Junk Spy.
You can look at items in more detail.
Junk Spy Keeps Up-to-Date
The Junk Spy Monitor
4. Technical and Other SupportThe Junk Spy User Forum:
Junk Spy Support Services:
When a Junk Message Gets Past Junk Spy:
When a Message Gets Identified as Junk by Mistake:
5. Junk Spy's Menu Options
Even though it isn't obvious from just looking at Junk Spy, the program does have a menu. You may have used it to look at Junk Spy's Status Center or email Monitor, or when you configured your email program.
Note: There is on-line help in Junk Spy for all the menu options, dialogs, fields, and buttons. You can get help at any time by pressing the F1 key or clicking the Help button in a dialog.
Junk Spy includes a comprehensive database of clues that are used to determine which messages are junk mail. The database contains words and phrases that are commonly found in junk email but not in your every day mail. Unlike conventional approaches to eliminating junk messages, Junk Spy's database is provided for you by the Junk Spy Research Center so that you don't need to worry about it.
However, everything that Junk Spy uses is actually under your control. So if you want to make changes to the clues Junk Spy works with, you can.
Each clue has its own definition which is composed of several elements:
The Find field has the specific text of the clue. In the example pictured, the text is "HOME BASED". If there is an exception that should prevent Junk Spy from making a match with this text, it goes in the Unless field.
At first glance you might think that you want to put something quite specific into the Unless field. Maybe you have a brother who forwards all the "home based" type offers he gets to you so you can advise him about them. In that case, you'd be inclined to use your brother's email address as the exclusion with HOME BASED. But, this works only for this one clue. It actually is more appropriate to put your brother's address on the Global Exceptions list, so that nothing he sends you is treated as junk.
Rather, the Unless field in clue definitions is better used for exceptions you don't have specifics on. For example, you might want to put "Internet" in the Unless field with the HOME BASED clue because you want to see all the emails relating to home based Internet-related business opportunities.
In addition to specific text, the definition of a clue includes the part of message that Junk Spy will Search in for the text:
You might be saying, "Well this is all well and good, but where are the definitions for clues?" They aren't listed on the Junk Spy menu. That's because there are lots and lots of clues which are grouped together for convenience into Detectors (which are on the menu).
Lots of junk email falls into a few common categories such as adult content or schemes for making money. As a way of organizing things, Junk Spy groups the clues it uses into similar categories called Detectors.
To look at detectors and the clues they contain, right-click on
Junk Spy's message area to bring up the popup menu or click on the system menu icon in the upper left corner and select Junk Spy.
Then select the Detectors option on the menu.
You'll see all the detector categories on the Junk Mail Detectors dialog. Use the Add button to create a new detector and Modify to make changes to one you already have.
Select the Delete button to remove the detector that's highlighted on the list - just be sure that's what you want to do; when you delete a detector, all the clues that are associated with it are removed as well. If you'd like to see a log showing how many times Junk Spy has found each of the clues in each detector, click on the Report button.
Note: You don't have to delete a detector to not have it used. Instead, you can uncheck the Enabled option that is part of the detector's definition.
Global Exceptions are the rules that prevent some messages from being classified as junk email, no matter how much they might look like it. Initially there are no global exceptions because they are personal and only apply to your mail.
Junk Spy uses clues to identify junk mail. Likewise, global exceptions are clues that work the other way around. When a global exception is located in an incoming message, the message is automatically determined not to be junk mail.
You can use the Add, Modify, and Delete buttons to maintain your list of global exceptions. Adding or modifying a global exception is just like adding or changing a
clue in a detector. You specify the exact text to be searched for, a possible exception to it, and where the text should be looked for in messages.
For example, one of the common uses of junk mail is to advertise multilevel marketing schemes, commonly called MLM. Thus, there is a clue specifically for MLM. Maybe you hate MLMs, but you're a member of the Modern Lawn Mowers' Assocation which goes by the name MLMA. Normally your MLMA mail would be considered junk because it contains MLM. However, if you create a Global Exception for MLMA, any mail containing MLMA will not be considered junk no matter which clues it matches.
Sometimes it's not quite so straight forward. If you'd like some help creating an exception, turn to Junk Spy's Exception Wizard. It starts with an email message that you don't want classified as junk, and with your answers to a few questions ends up with the exception.
When you always want to be sure of getting certain mail, the best thing to do is to create an exception. You have a choice - the exception can be tied to a particular
clue or it can be global. It's not always easy to decide what kind of exception you need, and that's where the Exception Wizard comes in.
You'll find it as an option on the Junk Spy menu which you get to by right-clicking on
the message area, or by clicking on the system menu icon in the upper left corner and then selecting Junk Spy.
The Exception Wizard works with a message that you don't want to be considered junk mail, but which Junk Spy has identified as such. It asks you questions that help it suggest an appropriate exception, and then creates the exception for you if you approve.
The process is really quite simple and direct. When Junk Spy has misidentified a piece of email as junk, here's what you can do.
As you might expect, not all messages can be effectively analyzed. Sometimes it's simply that what makes sense in most cases, doesn't make sense for you this time. Other times, it's that the header information for the message is incomplete. Some email programs - such as Notes
- include only partial or no header information when the complete message is copied.
Headers are, in fact, rather complicated looking, which is probably why your email program generally hides them from you. Below you can see what the header information from an actual email message looks like. Look toward the bottom, and you'll notice that Junk Spy flagged this one because it matched a clue in the Get Rich detector.
Depending which email program you are using, when you set it up for Junk Spy you may have made changes to some of Junk Spy's settings as well. Other than for that, you don't have to do anything else with the settings. But you ought to know they are all about.
There are three options on the Settings submenu:
The Detector Settings determine Junk Spy's general behavior with regard to your incoming email messages.
Several things can happen to junk mail. First, there's what Action to take when a message matches a dectector. You can either have the message destroyed or have it flagged as junk and delivered to you. Which you choose may be determined by the email program you are using because some programs require one or the other. You might want to check the
setup instructions for using Junk Spy that are specific to your email program.
There are additional Options you can utilize regarding junk messages, and you should check those you want:
There are Compatibility issues with your email program to consider.
In addition to Junk Spy's built-in detection system, External Detectors give you the option to also make use of several on-line services provided by independent organizations for combatting junk email. The Enable option for External Detectors must be checked in order for Junk Spy to utilize any of them. Each service can be utilized or not, as you'll see when you look at the Settings for external detectors.
The Realtime Blackhole List and the Relay Spam Stopper list include networks which are known to be friendly, or at least neutral, to spammers who use these networks either to originate or relay junk mail. The two lists are similar, and to some extent overlapping, but use different criteria to determine which networks and servers are contained in the list.
ORBS (Open Relay Behaviour-modification System) is an anti-spam project maintained by volunteers. They are on the web at http//www.orbs.org.
ORBS differs from RBL and RSS in that its main focus is on voluntary prevention and correction of web servers that permit third-party relays, a common method used to distribute junk mail. ORBS contacts sites with offending web servers directly, and many of them correct the situation right away. Those that don't are placed in the ORBS database of confirmed problem - i.e., open - mail servers.
When ORBS, RBL or RSS support is enabled in Junk Spy, all of the servers that a piece of mail has passed through are checked against those on the corresponding list. If even one of the servers is found on the list, the message is considered junk mail.
To make use of a screening facility, check the Enable box. An IP address or host name for its server is indicated in the Server field. If the address changes or you prefer using a different one, you can change the IP address or host name in this field.
Junk Spy has the ability to receive automatic updates via email (of course!), so that the detection database can be kept up-to-date. This process is very similar to updating an anti-virus program. The Update Settings determine whether or not updating is done.
The Enable Updates option must be checked in order for Junk Spy to process the updates sent by the Junk Spy Research Center. Updates are necessary to keep Junk Spy efficient, so you will want to keep this checkbox marked.
Note: You don't need to worry about changes you may have made to Junk Spy's detectors. Your changes will be maintained during the update process.
When updates are enabled, you have several options for documenting them:
The Post Office Settings control your connections for receiving and sending email. In general, you should only need to make changes to these settings when you are
configuring your email program and Junk Spy to work together.
You may need to specify addresses for your inbound and/or outbound mail Servers.
For Connection Security between Junk Spy, your email program, and the outside world, you have two options. Both reject connection attempts from outside your own system.
If you connect to the Internet over a dial-up line, you will probably want Junk Spy to Monitor (the) Dial-up Connection.
Check Enable to have Junk Spy monitor your connection and only attempt to process mail when the dial-up connection is active.
You'll also want to specify in the Interval field how frequently the connection status should be checked. Every 30 seconds is a reasonable frequency, but you can make it shorter or longer.
Note: This only applies to dial-up connections. If you use another method for email, don't enable the Monitor Dial-up Connection option. Also, this setting does not determine when Junk Spy tries to receive mail. It only determines how often if checks to see if your dialup connection has been established.
If the standard POP3 port (110) is already in use by another application, Junk Spy will need to use another port for your Local Connection. Check Enable if an alternate port should be used and put its number in the Listen port field.
Junk Spy maintains logs of relevant activity. You can access them from the View Log submenu:
If you notice an entry in the Detection Log for a message that should not have been classified as junk, there are a couple things you can do.
Note: The Junk Spy Research Center also wants to know about
junk that doesn't get caught. By forwarding such email to the Center, you'll be helping improve the junk mail database used to extrapolate Junk Spy's clues.
Whether or not Junk Spy automatically processes updates, and if they are logged, is controlled by the Update Settings.
6. All About Clues and Detectors
Clues to Junk
Clues are what Junk Spy uses as it analyzes your mail for junk messages, and there is no restriction on how many clues you can have.
Looking at Detectors
Adding or modifying a detector gives you access to everything that makes up that detector. Specifically, the Detector Definition includes:
which can be individually managed by:
Global Exceptions Are Never Junk
The Exception Wizard
Sample Header Taken From a Junk Message:
7. Settings for Detectors, Updates, and Connections
Detector Settings
Two of the outside anti-junk email resources - the Relay Spam Stopper (RSS) and Realtime Blackhole List (RBL) - are services of the Mail Abuse Prevention System (MAPS). MAPS is a nonprofit company whose self-proclaimed goal is "to stop the Internet's e-mail system from being abused by spammers." Information about them can be found at
http://maps.vix.com.
Update Settings
Post Office Settings
8. Looking at Junk Spy's Logs