LEXINGTON, MASS. - Ipswitch will this week ship a new version of its Windows-based e-mail server software that lets companies scan outbound messages for spam, viruses and inappropriate content. The new features are designed for network managers who are concerned about legal liabilities from e-mail sent by their employees.
IMail Server 7.1 lets network administrators establish complex rules for outbound e-mail similar to the rules already available for filtering inbound e-mail. Many other e-mail server software packages require plug-ins or third-party offerings to filter outbound e-mail.
IMail Server 7.1 can scan outbound messages and attachments for words and phrases associated with viruses, obscene language and confidential information. It can stop messages with large attachments or executables, and it can prohibit mail being sent to specific domains such as competitors. Administrators can set different rules for different groups of users. Messages that break the outbound rules are automatically quarantined or redirected to senior managers, with a warning sent to the end user.
"People are going to be gushing about the outbound rules," says beta tester Sandy Whiteman, a senior systems engineer with Cypress Integrated Systems, a mail systems integrator in New York that uses and recommends IMail Server.
"Companies will be able to filter any part of a message to make sure mail is not going to their main competitors or to lifestyle sites, Hotmail or Yahoo accounts," Whiteman says. "They'll be able to search for corporate secrets, names of competitors, names of internal projects as well as spam and porn."
Other new features of IMail Server 7.1 include support for 128-bit encryption and an improved administration interface with drop-down menus and checkboxes that make it easier to customize the software.
Whiteman already has migrated his 10-person company to IMail Server 7.1, and he expects the company's half-dozen customers who use IMail to transition to the new version, too.
Ipswitch remains one of the low-cost leaders with the latest version of IMail Server, analysts say. The software sells for $1,000 for up to 250 users, $1,500 for up to 1,000 users and $2,000 for unlimited use.
IMail Server offers Web-based messaging and calendaring, but none of the other features of groupware tools such as Microsoft Exchange and Lotus Notes. While IMail Server comes with Web mail client software, the software typically works with other e-mail client packages including Microsoft Outlook, Netscape Messenger and Eudora.
IMail Server supports all the key e-mail standards including Simple Message Transfer Protocol, Post Office Protocol, Internet Message Access Protocol and Lightweight Directory Access Protocol.
Customers of IMail Server include ISPs, small and midsize businesses, and large organizations with mobile workers such as the U.S. Army. Company officials say they have 49.5 million users, half of whom are overseas.
Ipswitch: www.ipswitch.com
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