SFF Net FAQ - Why does email I whitelist keep getting caught by the spam filter?

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Skiffy, the SFF Net Wizard
Frequently-Asked Question
Why does email I whitelist keep getting caught by the spam filter?

Skiffy says:

Sometimes clicking the Whitelist button in WebMail isn't enough.
Whitelisting is designed to allow all mail from a particular sender you want through the spam filters. Usually, clicking the Whitelist button on a message in WebMail accomplishes this. However, for some senders, this automatic whitelisting doesn't work. To understand why, it's necessary to understand (only a little, promise!) about email headers.
You may not know that email actually has two FROM: addresses:

- the FROM: address you see when you view your mail in a mail client or through Webmail, and
- an ENVELOPE FROM: address that mail servers use. This address is usually not visible (but is present in the email headers).

You can see these headers by clicking the Headers button in WebMail.

Often these two FROM: addresses are the same, sometimes not. You usually don't need to bother with the ENVELOPE FROM:, which is why it's usually invisible.
However, the Whitelist function of the spam filter only uses the ENVELOPE FROM: field to decide which messages to allow. As long as this field is the same each time a server sends you mail, the Whitelist knows to allow it. However, some email servers (usually mailing list mailers) will randomize the ENVELOPE FROM: address so it's different on each email. Here are some examples of randomized ENVELOPE FROM: headers:

sentto-9833211-1-1055456007-bettyb=sff.net@returns.groups.yahoo.com
bo-b00g6aqawrzq79a8yfx44b11v08jvb@b.e.llbean.com

Note: The headers may display addresses with brackets ( [ and ] ) substituted for the @ sign in the address. So the above sample addresses may appear as:
sentto-9833211-1-1055456007-bettyb=sff.net[returns.groups.yahoo.com]
bo-b00g6aqawrzq79a8yfx44b11v08jvb[b.e.llbean.com]

For whitelisting purposes, you'll need assume that the address is actually using the @ symbol.

To whitelist those kind of messages, you need to help the filter know to accept messages, even though the ENVELOPE FROM address is different each time. To do this, you must manually put a wildcard into your whitelist that matches the part of the ENVELOPE FROM address that doesn't change from message to message, i.e.:
*@returns.groups.yahoo.com
*@b.e.llbean.com
etc.

Note: Always include the asterisk * and @ sign part of the address in your whitelist entry.

You manually edit the whitelist by using WebMail. Click Options on the right-hand side of the WebMail menu, then choose Edit Whitelist. Enter your wildcard(s) in the list. Don't forget to save your changes! See Manual Whitelist/Editing in the online help for more info.

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