The five-year-old anti-spam group Open Relay Database (ORDB) has closed its doors, saying that it is no longer effective at protecting organizations against spam.
ORDB, which operated as a network of worldwide volunteers, aimed to stop spammers who used SMTP proxy servers, known as open-mail relays. Spammers used those relays as avenues to spread junk email across the Internet.
To combat spammers, ORDB published a blacklist of servers that operated as open relays so that system administrators could block email from those sources.
“We regret to inform you that ORDB.org is shutting down,” an ORDB spokesman said. “The general consensus within the team is that open relay RBLs [relay blocking lists] are no longer the most effective way of preventing spam from entering your network as spammers have changed tactics in recent years, as have the anti-spam community.”
While ORDB’s decision to close its doors may be seen as something of a victory for spammers, it may also be a sign of the times. When the organization began five years ago, 90 percent of junk email was sent through open relays. Today, open relays account for less than 1 percent of spam, with most spammers employing botnets.
In closing its doors, ORDB said it recommends that organizations look to a combination of tactics to fight spam, including graylisting and content-based analysis.
In the meantime, spam levels continue unabated. IronPort Systems, an Internet security company, said 63 billion spam messages were sent each day in October 2006, compared to 31 billion per day for the same period in 2005.
