How To Delist From 0spam
How To Delist From 0spam
Bulk mailing is one of the cheapest ways to reach millions of people in a short time. We use it to contact subscribers, clients and potential clients. But sometimes, our mailing system can hit a snag – it could be prevented from reaching your target audience because it has been classified as constituting a nuisance to the mailbox users or because it is suspected (or confirmed) to contain harmful contents.
This is usually as a result of a program installed and linked to the users’ mailboxes that protect them from spam-like mails or malware. One of these programs is 0spam (pronounced ‘zero spam’). If 0spam blacklists your domain or IP, mail delivery to some boxes will fail. Fortunately, this is totally reversible. This article is designed to teach you how to delist from 0spam. Delisting from 0spam means removing your domain name or IP address from the 0spam blacklist.
Being on the 0spam blacklist can hurt your business or affect your efficiency. Certainly, if you’re already on the blacklist, you do not want to remain there. And if you’re not there, you surely do not want to be there. That’s why you need to know how to delist from 0spam. Before we go into details on how to delist from 0spam, let’s find out what makes 0spam tick.
What Is 0spam?
0spam is a private company which began operations in the year 2000. It is a private company which protects users’ mailboxes from spam and spam-like activities, and malware or other potentially harmful contents. The basic services of 0spam are free but there are some paid services. The company also depend on donations from individuals and organizations for revenue.
How Does 0spam Work?
0spam makes use of spamtraps to identify sources of spam mails. It can be used to lure spam and you cannot use this mail for communication purpose! Since no email is solicited by the owner of the spamtrap email address, any email messages sent to this address is immediately considered unsolicited.
Anytime spam is sent to the 0spam spamtraps, the originating IP address will be listed in the 0spam DNSBL (0spam Domain Name System-based Blackhole List). This is a list of IP addresses reputed to send email spam. 0spam program will automatically block emails from IPs on this list from reaching their targets. The ‘Blackhole’ in the DNSBL is sometimes interchanged with ‘Blacklist’ or ‘Blocklist’.
If the spam is detected multiple times from a single Class C set of IP addresses, the Class C will be listed on the 0spam Network DNSBL. This will lead to a blanket block of all IPs from the Class C server or network.
What Other Services Does 0spam Offer?
URL blacklist: This list contains the IP addresses of domains found to be the source of spam emails in the 0spam spamtraps.
- IP notification services
- IP management access
Why Did 0spam Block My IP/Domain?
0spam was created to basically protect email users from spam and malware. Generally, here are some reasons why your doamin or IP was blocked by 0spam:
Spam: If you sent spam messages, the 0spam spamtraps will receive it and you will be blocked.
Technical issues: If your IP is not RFC compliant, you’ll be blocked. Other technical issues which may result in a block include: server errors and improper configuration or coding.
Bad content: Emails that contain fraudulent, illegal or abusive content will lead to a block. Emails containing malware are certain to result in a blacklist.
Other things that can lead to a blacklist include:
- Sending mails that do not follow bulk mail or newsletter rules.
- Relays or open relays with reports of spam.
- Computers or servers within your IP range sending spams or spam-like mails.
- Class C network reaching a certain threshold of spam mail source
How Do I Know My IP/ Domain Has Been Blocked?
Usually, there is no notification given to you if your IP address or domain is blacklisted. Your mails will simply fail to deliver. But 0spam has a service which will give you notification on your block status and a 24 hour grace to deal with any negligence or malpractice which caused the block, after which your domain or IP will appear live on their blacklist.
Apart From The Notification, Are There Other Ways To Check If I’m Blocked?
If you are not subscribed to receive notification when your IP or domain is blocked, you can still find out if your delivery problem is as a result of a 0spam block. You can visit their website on https://0spam.org. A textbox will direct you to enter your IP address to verify which 0spam DNSBL it’s currently listed on. Enter your IP address and check your IP or domain name on the list.
Other sites can also help you do this. One of them is https:mxtoolbox.com. It can check your IP address or domain name against up to a hundred DNSBLs.
How To Delist 0spam
Now that you know what 0spam is all about, it’s time to learn how to delist 0spam. The following steps are how to delist 0spam:
- Stop sending any more mails
- Scan your computer(s)/server(s) for malicious software
- If it’s a Class C IP range, you will need to notify your IP provider so they can contact other users in your Class C IP range to prevent further abuse
- Visit the 0spam website at https://0spam.org and request for a removal from their blacklist
What Next?
Once you’ve filled the forms and sent them to 0spam, cleaned up your system and network, you will be delisted from the 0spam blacklist. However, this doesn’t mean you can now do as you please. 0spam has no worries blacklisting you again if you fail to maintain the rules. They can even block you permanently for repeatedly offending. Therefore, you must keep your systems and practices clean. You should also take the following measures so that you won’t need to google ‘how to delist 0spam‘ in the future:
- If you run a newsletter/emailing service, you should verify that your users are confirmed and active
- If you have a standalone server, verify you are not purchasing email lists. This is how you are most likely to be listed
- If you provide email service to unverified users, you should limit sending to more than 200 emails a day in order to prevent abuse and listing
- Always scan your computers and servers for malware before send it any mails
- Use an professional to maintain your systems in order to avoid future technical issues which may make your IP address or domain behave like it contains malware
