Why didn’t my domain get approved?

If our Compliance Team didn’t approve your domain, then this means your domain has been listed in the blacklist.

Please consider this a final decision and do not resubmit your domain or similar domains for approval.

What is Blacklist?

A blacklist is a list used by receiving networks to judge a given IP and/or sending domain’s reputation. These lists are run by anti-spam organizations and most blacklistings are the result of sending Unsolicited Bulk Email to email addresses that never asked for it.

How do I know if my domain is on the blacklist?

There are countless blacklist providers and online tools in existence and some carry more power in the community than others. If you think your domain has been blacklisted, the first thing you need to do is make sure by doing a lookup on any of the following websites:

http://www.mxtoolbox.com/blacklists.aspx
http://multirbl.valli.org/lookup/
http://www.dnsbl.info/dnsbl-list.php
http://www.blacklistalert.org/

How did my domain get blacklisted?

Each blacklist database has its own criteria for blacklisting the domains. however, in most cases, it could be narrowed down to three main criteria’s:

– Technical
– Policy
– Evidence-based

Technical: could happen from mail server misconfiguration, such as missing or incorrect reverse DNS records, missing or incorrect banners, etc.

Policy: Sometimes entire internet service providers (ISPs) and even countries are blacklisted. Your domain may be simply in the region affected by the policy.

Evidence-based: occurs when the blacklist operator has direct or indirect evidence that a domain is sending spam emails.

There are also some common triggers that lead to blacklisting:

• A sudden surge in email sending volume occurs
• High Spam complaint rates
• Poor email list hygiene
• Bad content (certain words or phrases that express spam-like content)

How do I remove my domain from Blacklist?

If you’re able to find out why you were blacklisted, you can try to get it reversed.

Being listed on a smaller list is not that much of a concern as for the most part, it won’t impact your ability to send emails to your customers too much. However, if you land onto one of the bigger lists, used by ISPs to filter spam, it can have quite an impact on your emails being delivered and thus, your business.

If you’re blacklisted and believe you shouldn’t be, you will have to take actions to have your IP removed from the said list. Most DNSBLs will have clear instructions on how to get your domain off their list. This is done through a process called delisting and is done by directly contacting the operators of the list and requesting a removal.

Some things to keep in mind when delisting:

If you are a repeat offender, it gets more difficult to get off the list, at times even impossible.
Being on the blacklist means that you have matched the operators’ criteria and thus arguing with them over the validity is pointless. It is better to be open to criticism and work together to reach a solution.
If you know the cause of the listing, yet haven’t fixed the issue, its best to wait until it is resolved before applying for a delisting. The operators will be more lenient if they see that the problem was fixed before the application process.

Most DNSBLs have an automated process that removes low-level listings within a certain time frame (usually 1-2 weeks). If a Domain has been listed multiple times or been sending high volumes of spam, this process may take longer or even land in the permanently-blacklisted Domain list.

Here are some of the most prominent blacklists that you should keep an eye out for:

Composite Blocking List (CBL)
Spamhaus Block List (SBL)
XBL Exploits Block List
Spamcop
Passive Spam Block List (PSBL)
Invaluement
Barracuda