> ## Documentation Index
> Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://kb.hosting.com/llms.txt
> Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further.

# Stopping unwanted e-mail using Spam Filters

> Learn to manage spam with Apache SpamAssassin™ in cPanel: enable, configure, and disable filters to reduce unwanted emails.

This article describes how to use the Spam Filters tool in cPanel to reduce the amount of unwanted e-mail (spam) in your e-mail accounts. Spam Filters (powered by Apache SpamAssassin™) is an automated filtering system that uses a variety of techniques to identify and filter spam messages.

## Spam Filters

Spam can be a major annoyance, with messages filling up user inboxes. Additionally, spam messages can contain virus attachments or malicious links.

When you enable Spam Filters, powered by Apache SpamAssassin™, it uses scores to rate the likelihood that a message is spam. You can manage messages that Spam Filters marks as spam in a number of ways. For example, you can route messages marked as spam to specific folders, or you can automatically delete them.

<Note>
  Although you can configure Spam Filters to automatically delete messages marked as spam, we do not recommend enabling this feature. Instead, you should use a filtering rule that redirects suspected spam messages to a spam folder. For information about how to do this, please see [this article](/docs/filtering-spam).
</Note>

### Enabling Spam Filters

To enable Spam Filters in cPanel, follow these steps:

1. Log in to cPanel.
   > 📘 Note
   >
   > If you do not know how to log in to your cPanel account, please see [this article](/docs/accessing-cpanel).

2. On the **Tools** page, in the **Email** section, click **Spam Filters**:\
   ![cPanel - Email - Spam Filters icon](https://static.hosting.com/kb/kb-cpanel-jupiter-spam-filters-icon.png)

3. On the **Spam Filters** page, click **Process New Emails and Mark them as Spam**.

4. To enable auto-deletion of spam messages, click **Automatically Delete New Spam (Auto-Delete)**.

   * To change the deletion trigger level, click **Configure Auto-Delete Settings**. In the **Auto-Delete Threshold Score** text box, type the score number, and then click **Update Auto-Delete Score**.
     > 📘 Note
     >
     > A lower score is more restrictive. For example, an auto-deletion score of 1 is very aggressive and deletes many messages. An auto-deletion score of 10 is more permissive and allows more messages through without deleting them.

### Configuring Mail Spam Filters

You can further customize the parameters to control how Spam Filters examines incoming messages. You can also define whitelists (trusted senders) and blacklists (known spammers).

To customize Spam Filters in cPanel, follow these steps:

1. Log in to cPanel.
   > 📘 Note
   >
   > If you do not know how to log in to your cPanel account, please see [this article](/docs/accessing-cpanel).

2. On the **Tools** page, in the **Email** section, click **Spam Filters**:\
   ![cPanel - Email - Spam Filters icon](https://static.hosting.com/kb/kb-cpanel-jupiter-spam-filters-icon.png)

3. On the **Spam Filters** page, click **Show Additional Configurations**.

4. To configure whitelists, click **Edit Spam Whitelist Settings**:

   * Click **Add A New "whitelist\_from" item**, and then in the **whitelist\_from** text box, you can specify e-mail addresses that are trusted senders.

   * Click **Update Whitelist (whitelist\_from)**.

5. To configure blacklists, click **Edit Spam Blacklist Settings**:

   * Click **Add A New "blacklist\_from" item**, and then in the **blacklist\_from** text box, you can specify e-mail addresses that are known spammers.

   * Click **Update Blacklist (blacklist\_from)**.

6. To configure spam score settings, click **Configure Calculated Spam Score Settings**:

   * Click **Add A New "scores" item**.

   * In the **scores** list box, select the test name, and then type the score value.

     > 📘 Note
     >
     > We recommend using the following test scores:
     >
     > * **URIBL\_DBL\_SPAM 10.0 10.0 10.0 10.0**
     >
     > * **URIBL\_WS\_SURBL 10.0 10.0 10.0 10.0**
     >
     > * **URIBL\_BLACK 10.0 10.0 10.0 10.0**
     >
     > * **T\_DKIM\_INVALID 2.0 2.0 2.0 2.0**
     >
     > * **RDNS\_NONE 1.8 1.8 1.8 1.8**
     >
     > The **URIBL\_** tests check blacklists such as Spamhaus. The **RDNS\_NONE** test checks to see if the sending IP address has a reverse DNS entry, while the **DCC\_CHECK** test checks the DCC checksum database to detect bulk mail. If you later want to reset these scores to their default values, use the following test scores:
     >
     > * **URIBL\_DBL\_SPAM 0 1.7 0 1.7**
     >
     > * **URIBL\_WS\_SURBL 0 1.659 0 1.608**
     >
     > * **URIBL\_BLACK 0 1.775 0 1.725**
     >
     > * **T\_DKIM\_INVALID 0 0 0 0**
     >
     > * **RDNS\_NONE 0 1.1 0 0.7**

   * Click **Update Scoring Options**.

### Disabling Spam Filters

You can disable Spam Filters whenever you want. For example, if you are unable to receive a non-spam e-mail message, you can disable Spam Filters and ask the sender to resend the message so it reaches your account.

To disable Spam Filters in cPanel, follow these steps:

1. Log in to cPanel.
   > 📘 Note
   >
   > If you do not know how to log in to your cPanel account, please see [this article](/docs/accessing-cpanel).

2. On the **Tools** page, in the **Email** section, click **Spam Filters**:\
   ![cPanel - Email - Spam Filters icon](https://static.hosting.com/kb/kb-cpanel-jupiter-spam-filters-icon.png)

3. On the **Spam Filters** page, click **Process New Emails and Mark them as Spam**. cPanel disables Spam Filters.

## More information

For general information about SpamAssassin (which runs Spam Filters) please visit [http://spamassassin.apache.org](http://spamassassin.apache.org).

## Related articles

* [Managing e-mail deliverability settings](/docs/managing-e-mail-deliverability-settings)

* [E-mail Filtering](/docs/e-mail-filtering)

* [Filtering spam](/docs/filtering-spam)

* [Preventing outgoing e-mail from being marked as spam](/docs/preventing-outgoing-e-mail-from-being-marked-as-spam)