WebProNews

As the Federal Trade Commission implores the world's ISPs to help stop spam zombies, the software maker launches a new web site to help users with the spam issue.

Microsoft announced the arrival of two new tools and services aimed at helping to expand the fight against unwanted junk e-mail.

The MSN Postmaster web site serves as a central site containing information on sending e-mail to Hotmail users. Different sections of the site describe the steps Microsoft has taken to try and limit the effects of both junk and malicious e-mail on Hotmail users.

On the site, Microsoft claims its efforts prevent 3 billion e-mail messages from getting through to Hotmail users each day. Microsoft uses several filtering technologies to accomplish this.

As part of the Postmaster debut, Microsoft also notes it has released a preview version of Smart Network Data Services in English (SNDS). SNDS provides a number of reporting options regarding messages arriving for Hotmail users.

For instance, an ISP can find out the volume of e-mail being sent from its IP space to MSN Hotmail, how that e-mail is impacted by MSN Hotmail spam filtering, and what percentage of its e-mail has been marked as spam by MSN Hotmail and MSN customers.

The ISP would then be able to take action based on this information. Those actions should be in line with the FTC's "Operation Spam Zombies" initiative too.

David Utter is a staff writer for WebProNews covering technology and business. Email him here.