How to use the Spamfilter
Please follow this guide to configure and use the Spamfilter correctly.
IMPORTANT: The BullGuard Spamfilter works with your email client.
Your email client is the program you use for sending and receiving emails with an email address. Examples of email clients include Microsoft Outlook, Outlook Express or Thunderbird. The BullGuard Spamfilter integrates with these programs to filter spam emails.
The Spamfilter does NOT work with webmail - such as Yahoo, Hotmail or Gmail. If you access those addresses from your browser, you should know that email service providers use their own server spamfilters to deal with spam. The Spamfilter thus cannot integrate with browsers such as Internet Explorer or Firefox.
Note: This guide is valid for both the Spamfilter plugin in BullGuard v8.5 and the Free BullGuard Spamfilter.
Select your email client
Upon installation, BullGuard's Spamfilter automatically detects your email client and starts monitoring it. To ensure that the Spamfilter is monitoring the correct email client, please open your BullGuard application (double-click the BullGuard icon
near the clock).
Click on the Spamfilter section on the left, then the Overview tab in the upper menu.
Make sure to choose the email client you actually use from the drop-down list.
Next, you can configure some basic Spamfilter settings.
Automatically whitelist the addresses I write to - This will add any address you write to in the Whitelist, which is a list of allowed, valid email addresses. It is of course assumed that people do not normally write (or reply) to spammers (spam email addresses).
Automatically whitelist cc's of trusted senders - Checking this option will add to the Whitelist all email addresses found in the Cc (carbon copy) field of emails received from addresses you have already whitelisted. The assumption above is extended, in that people you know will not Cc spammers either.
Training your Spamfilter
You can train your personal Spamfilter in 3 different ways: configuring your Whitelist and Blacklist, using the Spamfilter Toolbar in your email client and by using the Wizard. To ensure optimal results, we recommend you combine the 3 methods.
The Whitelist
This list contains all trusted email addresses you receive emails from. They are usually valid addresses of people you know or work with, and who are highly unlikely to send spam. To be sure that an email will not be marked as spam by mistake, you can add the email address (or even its entire domain) it comes from in the Whitelist.
For example, in the picture below you will see that the email address support@bullguard.com is included in the Whitelist. This means that all emails from and to this email address will never be marked as spam. You can also see that the domain "www.bullguard.com" has been added to the WhiteList. This means that all email addresses that belong to this domain will never be marked as spam. Examples of emails for this domain are: support@bullguard.com, support_fr@bullguard.com, support_de@bullguard.com, support_es@bullguard.com, support_dk@bullguard.com, payment@bullguard.com and so on.
You can manually add an email address in the Whitelist by pressing the "+" button. Or you can delete an email address from the list by using the "-" button. Clicking the "+" button, will open the window you can see bellow. You only need to enter the email address or the domain and click OK.
IMPORTANT: You can use the Prefill Whitelist option to automatically whitelist all email address you have stored in your Contacts and in Sent Items (under the assumption that one does not normally send emails to spammers).
The Blacklist
This list contains email addresses that were marked as spam by the Spamfilter or by yourself. To be sure that emails from addresses marked as spam will not end up in your Inbox anymore, you should verify that these email addresses are included in the Blacklist.
For example, in the picture bellow, you will see that the email address user3@spam2.com is written in the Blacklist. This means that all emails from and to this email address will be marked as spam. You can also see that the domain "spam2.com" has been added to the Blacklist, which means that all email addresses that belong to this domain will be marked as spam. Examples of emails for this domain are: user1@spam2.com, user2@spam2.com, mailto:user3@spam2.com,%20user1@spam2.com, user4@spam2.com, user5@spam2.com and so on.
You can manually add an email address to the Blacklist by pressing the "+" button. Likewise, you can delete an email address by using the "-" button. Clicking the "+" button, will open the window you can see bellow. You only need to enter the email address or the domain.
The Spamfilter Toolbar
After installing BullGuard 8.5 (or the Free Spamfilter), you will see 4 new buttons in your email client. These buttons belong to the Spamfilter Toolbar, and will help you train your Spamfilter while using your email client.
Here is what each button does:
Spamfilter will open the Spamfilter module in BullGuard.
Spam marks any selected email as such. The email will be moved to the spam folder (Junk folder, Deleted Items, etc.) while the address it came from will be added to the Blacklist (if you set BullGuard to do so).
Not spam will unblock an email mistakenly marked as spam by the Spamfilter - as false positives may occur during the initial period of using the product. The email address it came from will be added to the Whitelist and emails from it will never again be marked as spam on your computer. This action should also move the email back to the Inbox.
Wizard will launch a step-by-step process which will help you set up your Spamfilter easily. We strongly recommend using it.
The Spamfilter Wizard
The Wizard will be displayed automatically the first time you open your email client after installing BullGuard.
Click Next to start the Wizard. The first step is to choose the folder where all spam emails will be moved.
Note: If you use Outlook Express / Windows Mail, note that spam emails can only be moved to the Deleted Items folder.
Step 2 means configuring the Whitelist. The Spamfilter will search your Address book and Sent Items folder, then copy all entries into the Whitelist. Press Next to move on.
You will now need to choose the folders within your email client where you only store valid emails (not spam). The email addresses from these folders will automatically enter the Whitelist. Press Next.
Note: You also have the option to not to select any folders. This means your Whitelist will not be pre-filled, and training will take longer.
After pre-filling your Whitelist, you will also need to fill in the Blacklist. To do that, select the folders within your email client where you only store spam emails (if any). The email addresses will automatically enter the Blacklist. Press Next to continue.
Note: You also have the option to not to select any folders. This means your Blacklist will not be pre-filled, and training will take longer.
The next window contains this notification:
You have now completed your Spamfilter configuration. Congratulations!
How the Spamfilter works
The beautiful thing about the Spamfilter is that it builds its efficiency not only on your training, but also on spam reports sent by all BullGuard clients who use the Spamfilter. This is why BullGuard's Spamfilter is called a "collaborative" filter: because it actively incorporates your feedback and experience to win the battle against spam.
Note: You will be asked before a spam log is sent to BullGuard.
The idea is that if a BullGuard user marks an email address as a source of spam, this email address will become a "suspected spam address". If more users mark the same address as spam, then the email address will be entered in the spam addresses database. This way, every time you are using the Spamfilter, you are actually helping it be better and more efficient at catching spam.
Congratulations, the BullGuard Spamfilter is now configured and you are safe from spam!
Kind regards,
The BullGuard Team
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