Anti-spam program may Hurt Universities: schools can't send unless check is in the mail.

With all the junk e-mail that crowds our in-boxes these days, a program that curbs spam would seem like a good thing, no? Microsoft (www.microsoft.com) is working with California-based IronPort (www.ironport.com) to develop Bonded Sender, a program that separates "Legitimate" Internet marketers and bulk mailers from spammers. Bonded Sender centers on a "white List" of Internet marketers who have posted a cash bond and agree to abide by a set of guidelines. White List members will be allowed to send their e-mail ads to the more than 170 million active Hotmail and MSN users.

But, according to the Electronic Frontier Foundation (www.eff.org), a group dedicated to "defending freedom in the digital world," there is cause for concern: Bonded Sender would also punish innocent groups--such as colleges and universities--who aren't necessarily sending advertisements, but rely on e-mail Lists to reach their constituents. "It absolutely would affect a university's ability to contact alumni via e-mail Lists," says EFF Policy Analyst Annalee Newitz. "Bonded Sender programs, at Least as they exist at this point, are designed to stop bulk mail, which is any mail that's sent out to a Large List of people," Newitz says. "But, this is also the way spam is sent out."

Fees vary by the volume of marl sent, according to IronPort CEO Scott Weiss. But unless a school has paid the fee, the program won't differentiate between spam and a Legitimate marketing piece, says Newitz.

"The idea is to protect people against spam. However, we believe that this defense reaches far beyond blocking spam and into blocking free expression."