Some incoming messages listed as "filtered" with negative spam score

[swbrains]

I'm not sure if the latest update to cPanel's spam handling caused an issue, but I noticed a problem that occurred a few times over the past few days where I previously have not had an issue:

I didn't receive some emails I was expecting (password reset and stuff like that). Of course, I checked my email app's spam folder first, but they weren't there. I requested several more password resets from the site and still no receipt. Finally, I logged into cPanel to view Track Email and noticed the emails were received, but "Filtered". They had a spam score of "4", well below the "6" score threshold I had set in SpamAssassin when I first configured it. I even added a whitelist entry for *@example.com (that is, allow all email from that domain) and it still would not come through. Thinking perhaps I did not specify the whitelist properly, I finally just disabled SpamAssassin completely and requested a new password and it was delivered to my inbox successfully.

I had this happen with another email as well (before the previous one mentioned), but in that case, I ended up using a different email address (gmail) which allowed me to get the message I needed from the website and that worked. But that message was also marked as a 3 or 4 in Track Email and was listed as "Filtered" as well.

 

[cPanelLauren]

Hi @swbrains

The message in the logs indicates that you have a filter for spam if the score is a certain value. If you go to cPanel>>Email>>Global Filters and Email Filters do you have a filter present which filters mail with a score of X or higher?
Thanks!

 

[swbrains]

I'm not sure which message or logs you are referring to. But on this user account where this occurred, I had a couple of different filters set up initially but they were the first things I removed as I suspected them. A subsequent password request from the third-party site was still listed as "filtered." I then disabled SpamAssassin and requested a new reset email and it was delivered and accepted properly.

 

[cPanelLauren]

Hi @swbrains

The message/log I'm referring to is:

I logged into cPanel to view Track Email and noticed the emails were received, but "Filtered". They had a spam score of "4", well below the "6"

I understand that disabling SpamAssassin resolved this but I believe that's because you're not flagging mail as spam anymore. What it sounds like is happening is you've added a filter and when mail is flagged as a specific score it's getting filtered. That's what the "Filtered" message in Track mail delivery means. I would suggest looking in both Global Filters and Email Filters. If it's not there you may want to look at the Exim system filter to see if you've modified that in the past as well.

Thanks!

 

[swbrains]

Thanks. Is there any place in the system where it tracks *which* filter rule was used to filter the message?

 

[cPanelLauren]

Hi @swbrains

That information isn't logged though if you look at the exim transaction at /var/log/exim_mainlog it will indicate central filter for a global filter and user filter for a single user account filter.

Thanks!

 

[swbrains]

Ok, thanks.