BitDefender releases free anti-spam server software ‘for geeks’

Businesses running Linux-based e-mail servers now have a free option for anti-spam protection thanks to Bucharest-based BitDefender.

The Romanian security vendor has been seeing some success with its free anti-virus software and decided to try a similar offering in its line of products for small and medium-sized businesses. Antispam for Linux Mail Servers is compatible with all major Linux distributions and offers easy installation, a Web-based or command-line interface, and e-mail (but not phone) support. It’s now available for free download on BitDefender’s Web site.

BitDefender felt the open source community didn’t have many good options when it came to anti-spam products, says Catalin Cosoi, head of online threats and antispam. So it decided to give it one.

“This will help a lot of people and show that a good antispam solution can help with their businesses,” he says. “We’re trying to focus on geeks. They are the trendsetters and they are using the best technology out there.”

Related Story:Tech reporter busts two spammers breaking the law

Geeks, or a small niche market, are actually going to be interested in using BitDefender’s free anti-spam product. Most e-mail servers are Windows-based machines, and other hosted services like Postiniare also rising in popularity amongst small shops, says James Quin, lead research analyst with Info-Tech Research Group.

“It’s going to be applicable to very small shops running open source software,” he says. “Most businesses are going to pay for a platform to do this.”

Spam, or unsolicited e-mail, is a big problem for business e-mail. Consumers have the benefit of a Web mail provider or Internet Service Provider that filter out most spam messages at the network level, before they ever receive their e-mail. But businesses must invest in a way to do that filtering, or else servers would awash in spam e-mails. Most security vendors peg spam at around 80 to 90 per cent of all e-mail sent.

BitDefender’s free product only filters out spam. It doesn’t have security features such as scanning of e-mail content and attachments.

“You can upgrade to use all the other features,” Cosoi says. BitDefender offers paid-for mail server products such as Security for Mail Servers and Business Security Suite.

With the free anti-spam product, you get what you pay for, Quin says.

“It’s pretty good in terms of capability and functionality, but it’s pretty limited,” he says. “It’s an unsolicited e-mail filter. That’s all it really does.”

Many other competing products on the market combine anti-spam with security features, the analyst adds. If a business were to use this product, they’d also need another piece of software to weed out viruses and malware. That means running two different consoles to manage configuration and updates, for one server.

BitDefender’s anti-spam technology has garnered nine award from Virus Bulletin, which conducts independent tests. The software promises an easy installation process. BitDefender says it’s offering the only free anti-spam offering in the Linux community.

“It’s free and it’s good and you should use it,” Cosoi says.

Users requiring support for the product can e-mail [email protected].

Brian Jackson is a Senior Writer at ITBusiness.ca. Follow him on Twitter, read his blog, and check out the IT Business Facebook Page.

Would you recommend this article?

Share

Thanks for taking the time to let us know what you think of this article!
We'd love to hear your opinion about this or any other story you read in our publication.


Jim Love, Chief Content Officer, IT World Canada

Featured Download

Brian Jackson
Brian Jacksonhttp://www.itbusiness.ca
Editorial director of IT World Canada. Covering technology as it applies to business users. Multiple COPA award winner and now judge. Paddles a canoe as much as possible.

Featured Story

How the CTO can Maintain Cloud Momentum Across the Enterprise

Embracing cloud is easy for some individuals. But embedding widespread cloud adoption at the enterprise level is...

Related Tech News

Get ITBusiness Delivered

Our experienced team of journalists brings you engaging content targeted to IT professionals and line-of-business executives delivered directly to your inbox.

Featured Tech Jobs