A recent article in The Register discusses a new malware attack that is capable of bypassing virtually all antivirus protection software. This coincides with many customer reports of highly targeted malware attacks. Fortunately, Sendmail has multiple ways to help them combat many of these attacks through the use of inventive enforcement of email protocols, layered protection, and sophisticated heuristics engines. Additionally, Sendmail is constantly working on new ways to more efficiently protect customers’ environments while providing platinum level email delivery services.
Enforcement of email protocols forces connections to act normally and innocently. Infected systems tend to not properly follow the rules of email relaying. By recognizing this at the connection level, most malware can be stopped before incurring any system workload. Examples of Sendmail’s inventive enforcement are: DNS null-MX, Separation of mail flow, GreetPause feature, DKIM, SPF/SenderID, and TLS.
Layered protection reduces overall filtering workload, thereby allowing more robust filters to work on the more complicated emails. The Sendmail Sentrion Message Processor provides layered components that filter incoming threats in addition to maintaining a desired work flow. These include DNSBL databases, connection controls, BATV filtering, and Sentrion policies.
Heuristics engines analyze the types of code segments present in attachments, and understand coding behavior that tends to indicate malware. Sentrion Message Processors can employ many kinds of engines that offer solutions to spam and virus protection such as: Cloudmark Antispam, CommTouch Antispam with Zero-Hour Protection, McAfee Antivirus, Frisk Antivirus, and other engines employed with standard Milter.
Unfortunately there is no single “magic bullet” to protect networks. However, Sendmail provides sophisiticated and complete solutions to a total email infrastructure approach which forms a common backbone platform for email infrastructure. Plugged into this common platform are the specific security, compliance, and custom apps each customer needs to address their specific requirements. Sendmail’s broad spectrum of customers and partners provides fertile experience to develop new and even more effective email apps to stay on top of current threats and messaging needs.
Please let me know what you think – there is a lot of technical detail behind this that I would be happy to share for those who are interested.