Posted 03 November 2012 - 14:21
The fact remains that 90% of all email traffic is spam due to the 'freebee' world of SMTP servers. Anyone can run their own SMTP server and send millions of bogus emails; if they get blocked, all they have to do is change their IP and domain. The only way to fix this paradigm is to change the way email itself is structured.
1) Require anyone with an SMTP server to purchase a certificate that gets tied to the mail-server hardware and register with a GLOBAL database of valid domains. If your not in this database, or you abuse the system, your certificate is revoked and the HARDWARE itself barred from future certificates. With no valid certificate/registration, other (I will call them EMAIL-2 servers) will not receive email from your domain.
2) Eliminate the 'freemium' business model of email. Spam would be nearly wiped out if email was no longer free. For instance, you would have to purchase your email address from one of many providers as well as register your client devices/install client certificates in the mail program/client browser to assist with outbound validation. This would help prevent email hijacking as well as create some accountability since email would now be traceable to not only an IP, but to a registered device/certificate. The actual infringing client device could get blacklisted in this model.
3) Create different email "classes" such as "Personal" and "Business" and structure some rules regarding them. For instance, a business email address can not 'solicit' more then a certain amount of email to a personal address unless the personal address explicitly authorizes extended solicitation by replying to the address as a form of 'validation'.
I realize this changes the anonymity of email but you really cant fix it unless we change it.
In all seriousness, I would be gun ho on creating a system like this.....