Question regarding the spam filter

Stiletto · 25 Mar 2016, 12:34 AM

Hey all.

Just started redirecting another email address to my Fastmail account.It receives a lot of spam.

Stupid question: When I mark things as junk and they get moved to my Junk Mail folder, how long do I need to keep them there until the spam filter "learns" that I think they're junk and moves things like them there in the future? Is it instantaneous, or is it queued up and later batched for processing? So if I manually clear the Junk Mail folder daily or twice-daily, will it never be "learned"?

Thanks.

janusz · 25 Mar 2016, 01:03 AM

Don't clear it so often. There is an option (for any folder, BTW) tor automatic deletion after so many days, set it to >7 days.

Stiletto · 25 Mar 2016, 09:59 PM

Thanks for the advice.

Berenburger · 25 Mar 2016, 10:31 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Stiletto

Thanks for the advice.

More explanation here.

ChinaLamb · 26 Mar 2016, 06:33 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Stiletto

Hey all.

Just started redirecting another email address to my Fastmail account.It receives a lot of spam.

Stupid question: When I mark things as junk and they get moved to my Junk Mail folder, how long do I need to keep them there until the spam filter "learns" that I think they're junk and moves things like them there in the future? Is it instantaneous, or is it queued up and later batched for processing? So if I manually clear the Junk Mail folder daily or twice-daily, will it never be "learned"?

Thanks.

Supposed to scan 1x every 24 hours...

Clear the messages after 2 days and you'll be fine.

BritTim · 26 Mar 2016, 08:09 AM

When you mark things as Spam or Not Spam, the Bayes database is updated immediately, and there is no need to retain messages for any specified period of time. According to (the invariably correct) Bill, the same is true when you move emails to or from Junk Mail using the web interface.

Where the retention period becomes important is if you are moving messages using an external mail client, and using spam learning/ham learning folders. In that case, the messages should be retained in those folders for at least one full day.

Note that it is not usually advisable to have Junk Mail and Inbox set for spam/ham learning. Messages in these folders are already correctly classified. By forcing the system to do double counting, the filters can be skewed non optimally. When the correct decisions are already being made, you do not want to make changes.

Stiletto · 27 Mar 2016, 12:07 AM

Thank you guys!

25 Mar 2016, 12:34 AM	#1
Stiletto Junior Member Join Date: Feb 2002 Posts: 21	Question regarding the spam filter Hey all. Just started redirecting another email address to my Fastmail account.It receives a lot of spam. Stupid question: When I mark things as junk and they get moved to my Junk Mail folder, how long do I need to keep them there until the spam filter "learns" that I think they're junk and moves things like them there in the future? Is it instantaneous, or is it queued up and later batched for processing? So if I manually clear the Junk Mail folder daily or twice-daily, will it never be "learned"? Thanks.

25 Mar 2016, 01:03 AM	#2
janusz The "e" in e-mail Join Date: Feb 2006 Location: EU Posts: 4,944	Don't clear it so often. There is an option (for any folder, BTW) tor automatic deletion after so many days, set it to >7 days.

25 Mar 2016, 09:59 PM	#3
Stiletto Junior Member Join Date: Feb 2002 Posts: 21	Thanks for the advice.

26 Mar 2016, 08:09 AM	#6
BritTim The "e" in e-mail Join Date: May 2003 Location: mostly in Thailand Posts: 3,095	When you mark things as Spam or Not Spam, the Bayes database is updated immediately, and there is no need to retain messages for any specified period of time. According to (the invariably correct) Bill, the same is true when you move emails to or from Junk Mail using the web interface. Where the retention period becomes important is if you are moving messages using an external mail client, and using spam learning/ham learning folders. In that case, the messages should be retained in those folders for at least one full day. Note that it is not usually advisable to have Junk Mail and Inbox set for spam/ham learning. Messages in these folders are already correctly classified. By forcing the system to do double counting, the filters can be skewed non optimally. When the correct decisions are already being made, you do not want to make changes.

27 Mar 2016, 12:07 AM	#7
Stiletto Junior Member Join Date: Feb 2002 Posts: 21	Thank you guys!