Hi John,
Through recent testing, we've identified a major flaw with the Bayesian filter implementation, and as a result of our investigation, Bayesian filtering has been removed from SmarterMail 17.x (currently in BETA), 16.x and 15.x. We can no longer offer support for the Bayesian filtering spam check since it is fundamentally flawed and cannot be corrected without a complete re-write. For installations running 14.x and older, we strongly advise disabling the Bayesian filter check indefinitely.
Please note that the performance of the Bayesian filtering within SmarterMail has been surpassed by other methods of spam detection, such as MessageSniffer and Cyren. These two platforms leverage hashing functionality along with heuristically-based analytics to more accurately detect and stop spam messages from being delivered. In short, Bayesian filtering is a relic of older days. You could consider it the horse and carriage compared to the automobile that is modern spam protection. That said, those who still wish to implement Bayesian filtering may benefit from reviewing
eFa project, a third-party, open-source filter that includes Bayesian and dedicated Spamassassin.
Regarding the Mark Spam vs Block Sender options... The Mark Spam button will be removed in the future releases of 17.x, 16.x and 15.x. Currently, its only function is to move the selected messages to the Junk Email folder. We are making changes to how a user will manage spam in their inbox, and we are open to modifications. However, because there are many posts relating to these topics throughout this Community, we are going to lock these threads and continue the discussion on one centralized thread:
DISCUSSION: Block Sender / Mark Spam Functionality
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Andrea Free
SmarterTools Inc.
877-357-6278
www.smartertools.com