Lizz
Premium
join:2002-10-22
Fullerton, CA
| Email Problems?
Something really strange is happening because I haven't gotten any spam in my att/yahoo mail (pacbell.net address) since first thing this morning, and I always get a lot.
I had gotten regular e-mail until a little while ago, but now I'm not getting a message I sent myself. |
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gdm
Premium,MVM
join:2001-06-15
Mchenry, IL
clubs: | See here as well »Where did my spam go? |
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Lizz
Premium
join:2002-10-22
Fullerton, CA | Well, it's getting stranger by the minute because I have just gotten the DSLR notification of your message via e-mail, got an e-mail from a gmail user . . . but still haven't gotten the message I sent myself! |
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Abbie Nomail
@pacbell.net | reply to Lizz
I have not received any email today, either. No spam. Nada. I suspect something is terribly broken at ATT Yahoo's email system. |
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ajlarue
join:2001-01-29
Coronado, CA | reply to Lizz
I'm having the same issue, normally a hundred or so emails, today only 29. |
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Lizz
Premium
join:2002-10-22
Fullerton, CA
| reply to Abbie Nomail
Abbie,
I'm not sure how to post a link to another thread, but if you scroll up a little and click on the link to "where has my spam gone" in gdm's message to me you'll see what I found out.
And since you say you're not getting any regular emails, you might want to check that you haven't done the dumb thing I somehow managed to do: put your own address in the "block sender" list. Since it takes a few steps to accomplish that, I'm still at a loss as to how I did it.
I think I've gotten only 2 spam emails today. That count was always much, much higher, so I hope that what ATT/Yahoo is doing is working . . . and NOT also stopping "real" email! |
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Lizz
Premium
join:2002-10-22
Fullerton, CA
| reply to ajlarue
ajlarue,
As I told Abbie, click the link in gdm's message and you'll see what I found out.
I don't know what to say about not getting "real" emails. I have been receiving those (all except those from me to me, of course until I took myself of my spam list), but I suppose if "they" are upgrading servers, there could be some undesirable effects. If so, hopefully those will be very short-lived. |
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Erald
@telenet.be
| reply to Lizz
I am sending email to a pacbell.net address, which normally always got there. Now at once I get it bounced as being rejected because the IP I am sending from is blocked.
host pbimail7.prodigy.net[207.115.37.22] said: 553
5.3.0 nlpi031,DNSBL:521
The servers I tried to sent from are no where listed as spamming servers nor has there been any problems there. (tried three different servers).
Mail is simply not getting through only via yahoo or hotmail. Complaining or questions are simply not answered.
So think you guys on att email will not get many email anymore since the blocking seems to be random.
This is happening randomly for some weeks now, sometimes it is getting through, sometimes it is not (now most of the times not) |
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gmccomb
@pacbell.net
| Saw this problem one month ago (16 Feb 08). My sending IP's were and are not on any RBL's. Followed AT&T's "please remove block" procedure for admins and things got better until 17 Mar 2008. Since then, pbimailX.prodigy.net and sbcmxX.prodigy.net servers have been refusing (most/all?) email for users@pacbell.net and users@sbcglobal.net. AT&T responds to "please remove block" admin requests with auto email denying my IP's are blocked. So far, no response from follow-up emails except their auto email promising action within 24-48 hours (i.e. by yesterday), and sending me back to original "block_inquiry" Web page where I started.
... while talking to sbcmx7.prodigy.net.:
Diagnostic-Code: SMTP; 553 5.3.0 nlpi027,DNSBL:521 Vzzz.zzz.zzz.zzzV is blocked. For information see:»www.att.net/bls_rbl/ |
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ajlarue
join:2001-01-29
Coronado, CA | reply to Lizz
A friend tried to send me an email a week ago and it was "undeliverable" he sent it again a couple days ago and it got through. I don't like this one bit, who knows how long it's been going on. |
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bwclark
join:2004-07-05
Eureka, CA
| reply to Lizz
Huge reduction in SPAM emails here over the past couple days. Have 4 email accounts and normally get 100+ SPAM emails mostly filtered out using MailWasher. However, now only getting about 10!
 |
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Yacc
@sbcglobal.net
| reply to Lizz
same problem here, started happening recently
receiving only a couple of emails on my account when I use to get tens a day (no counting spam)
found more people experiencing the problem (»answers.yahoo.com/question/index···7AAVyz1x) |
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montana3087
Say hello to my little friend
Premium
join:2001-05-03
Santa Clara, CA
clubs: | That Yahoo Answer is from Jan. 24, so I don't think it is the same thing.
--
You know what? I have a ball. Perhaps you'd like to bounce it? |
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homenode
Premium
join:2007-11-18
Bullhead City, AZ
1 edit | reply to Lizz
This *appears* to be a multi-layered SPAM filter at at&t that is a bit "overzealous".
I have three domains, all hosted at dns2go. Starting in the afternoon on 20 March, mail to at&t domains (sbcglobal.com, pacbell.com, etc.) started getting rejected with the following message:
553 5.3.0 flpi188,DNSBL:521 ATTRBL To request removal of, 63.149.6.188, send the complete error message in an E-mail to removeme@sbc.sbcglobal.net
Interestingly, each seperate mail ID in my domains was able to send up to two consecutive messages before receiving this block. And, if I waited about 2 hours, I could again send up to two messages per ID before the blocking returned.
By Friday afternoon (21 March) the message had changed to:
553 5.3.0 nlpi021,DNSBL:521 63.149.6.188 _is_blocked.__For_information_see:»www.att.net/bls_rbl/
Now, under normal circumstances, I'd just do an open relay check on my MRA and then contact at&t to be removed. This time, however, because of the big hacking wave that hit major secure routers and web hosts last week, the "individualized" response got me worried. I contacted Deerfield support (parent of dns2go), and they dug into the problem. It appears that at&t was doing this to their entire /24 block: any mail from domains that resolved to one of Deerfield's IP addresses (the addresses are actually leased from QWEST out of their Dallas router) was getting this treatment at random. Deerfield filed the appropriate paperwork with at&t to release the blocks on their addresses Friday afternoon. However, because of the Easter holiday, it appears that this will not complete until next week.
One other item of interest from Deerfield tech support: this has been going on sporadically for over a month, and appears to be focused on mail that originates from dynamic IP address blocks. That is: if you are mailing from a domain that does not resolve to a registered static IP block, you may be black listed at any time.
To be frank, I can't say that I blame at&t that much. It is really, REALLY, REALLY hard to block SPAM. I've been self-hosting my mail servers for nearly 20 years now, and even I've had to subscribe to a 3rd. party spam block service - I just couldn't keep up with "sticking my finger in the holes in the dike". And, given the volume of SPAM that at&t has to handle, there isn't much else they could have done to inform senders what the problem is - OK, a press release would have been good form - but the info in the message header is enough for most administrators to get on the right track.
On the other hand, it COULD be a "legitimate" attack inside at&t's firewall. Worse, it could be a marketing ploy to drive Joe User's into getting an at&t/Yahoo! email account ("you can only email your friends if you're with US!"). Or force people to drop POP/SMTP mail in favor of strictly controlled WEB-based clients - at major "secure" providers like Yahoo! or Google. Too early to tell on this one: the jury's still out.
I'll post more info as I get it. Anyone responding, please note if you're using POP/SMTP from a local client or WEB-based mail only, and if you're mailing from a "major" domain or your "own" domain - oh, and if you have a static or dynamic IP. No names or numbers, just to get some idea of where this is focused...
Thanks in advance!
Brett
--
Brett Brennan
VP/CITO
Homenode Group Inc. |
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Larus Hale
@sbcglobal.net
| reply to Lizz
OK:
I'm using a POP/SMTP account.
I'm using a "major" domain: sbcglobal.net.
It is a dynamic IP-not static.
In the last few days, my spam has droped from about 100 per day between two email accounts to 2-3.
I am certainly concerned about what legit emails I am not getting. How can we find out, besides waiting for friends and associates complaining we have not responded to their emails? |
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bwclark
join:2004-07-05
Eureka, CA
1 edit | reply to Lizz
SPAM gone
I have had the same email account since 1999!
xxx@pacbell.net
Static IP address also, and SPAM has dropped significantly in the past few days. Normally use MailWasher to filter out SPAM, but now it is not necessary. 
I don't use Yahoo email at all, but have checked to see if anything is ending up there...none. |
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Lizz
Premium
join:2002-10-22
Fullerton, CA
| reply to homenode
Re: Email Problems?
I've had the same email address since 2000: xxx@pacbell.net
I check my mail in Yahoo web mail prior to retrieving it with my POP3 client.
So far no errors on outgoing, but I know for a fact one legitimate email was blocked twice on the sender's end (I don't think they got an error message).
Of course, there may be more legit email being blocked that I don't know about. |
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Larus Hale
@sbcglobal.net
| reply to Lizz
I just had a "chat/help" session with AT&T support and was advised they have a trouble ticket set up for this problem. He acknowleged the "issue" was causing many of their ISP customers to not receive emails sent to them and that only some of the senders were getting "bounce" messages-others are not aware their email was not received by the recipient. I asked twice whether this problem is being caused by new AT&T spam filtering and twice he ignored the question in his response. He advised the eta on correcting the problem was "as soon as possible". He also advised senders who receive a notice that their emails are not getting through should "send an email to removeme@ sbc.sbcglobal.net with a copy of the error and sending IP, and they should receive a confirmation when complete". |
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Lizz
Premium
join:2002-10-22
Fullerton, CA
| Here's the information I received about how people can get "unblocked." Of course, someone has to KNOW they're blocked, but if they do, maybe this will help a few folks:
AT&T Block Inquiry Website
»www.att.net/general-info/rblinquiry.html
»www.att.net/general-info/mail_in···iry.html
»www.att.net/general-info/mail_in···min.html
If you have a customer that receives a bounce back stating they were blocked by a DNSBL, have them send an email to removeme@sbc.sbcglobal.net with a copy of the error and sending IP, and they should receive a confirmation when complete. |
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homenode
Premium
join:2007-11-18
Bullhead City, AZ
| reply to Lizz
Thanks, Lizz. Good start for analysis.
As of now it appears that my mail is getting through again. Or I'm at least not getting a bounce message. I'm going on the road for a few days, so I might not be able to check accurately until Wednesday - depends on WiFi coverage.
If any of your friends have their own domains that they mail from, please have them check for bounces from you - like the one that was blocked twice. THAT's where the issue appears to be.
BTW, I found another L O N G post here that seems to be closely related:
»Bellsouth blocking my legit email server
Same symptoms, but might be slightly different mechanism.
Again, thanks for the feedback. Anyone else?
--
Brett Brennan
VP/CITO
Homenode Group Inc. |
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