Vodafone to Block Some Spam Mail

Vodafone K.K. said today today they would introduce a new function that blocks mails with URL links sent via the Internet containing invitations to dating and adult sites, starting late March. The company said they “aim to make [the] Vodafone live! mobile Internet service more dependable for customers.” The major source of unsolicited mail in Japan has traditionally been Internet mail servers from which spammers dump mail addressed to mobile terminals into the carriers’ wireless Internet services. It is free to send mobile-terminated mail, unlike in countries that use GSM network systems.

Also, mobile mail in Japan can display embedded links to non-official URLs.

The company said that by by employing NEC Corp.’s mail filtering system that adopts NetSTAR Inc.’s URL database, the URL mail blocking function will reject emails sent via the Internet containing URL links that match specific categories registered in the database for dating and adult sites.

By accessing the Custom Mail Set-up page from either Vodafone live! or the Vodafone K.K. website (www.vodafone.jp), customers have three options for handling URL link mails: ‘refuse all’, ‘refuse mails with specified URLs’, or ‘accept all (default setting)’. By blocking mails with URL links, there is less danger of young people accidentally accessing dating or adult sites and greater overall comfort in using mobile handsets.

Also, since December 2003, Vodafone K.K. has been implementing measures that restrict the number of bulk mails sent from Vodafone K.K. handsets. Now, with the introduction of the URL mail blocking function as a measure to stop indiscriminate emails sent via the Internet, Vodafone K.K. believes it has comprehensively strengthened measures to combat spam.

About NetSTAR Inc.
A participant of the Internet Association Japan sponsored Mobile Filtering Technology Development Study Group, NetSTAR Inc. is the one of few companies with technology for database compilation and URL classification, as well as a means of updating and delivering the latest URL databases to customers. NetSTAR?s URL lists are automatically acquired through an advanced algorithm, which is the largest of its scale in Japan and visually checks each website, and then classified and registered. NetSTAR website: http://netstar.jp