Frequently
Asked
Questions

FAQs | General Account Questions

• Can I see the Service Agreement contract text before applying for the service?

  Spamhaus wants to ensure that its data is only given to reputable and qualified organizations, therefore we need to know who you are before offering you access to Spamhaus data.

  The Spamhaus Service Agreement is between you and Spamhaus and our Partners. You can view these service terms when you sign up for a free trial or free service account, before clicking submit.

  As a Spamhaus customer, you also have access to the Spamhaus Service Agreement via the Customer Portal, which can be downloaded in PDF format.

• Does the pricing change?

  Yes. Where volume and usage hasn’t changed for a customer, we adjust pricing in line with inflation and market value.

  For customers whose usage has changed, their pricing will be changed accordingly, annually on renewal. There will be exceptional cases where changes may be made mid-contract, where usage is greatly exceeding contracted limits.

• How can I change the notification email address on my account?

  To view the email address where reports are currently being sent, go to account settings. To make changes to this email address please contact us.

• What is the Datafeed/Service application process?

  The application process is designed to allow organizations to initiate an application without committing to taking the service or making a payment, until they are satisfied with the service and have agreed to the service terms. The process is:

  1. Complete and submit the sign up form for either a free 30 day trial or free service account form
  2. Receive and click on the email validation link to confirm your interest to us
  3. For Passive DNS and Data Query Service you will gain immediate access to the data. For DNS Firewall and Border Gateway Protocol (BGP) Feeds we require a small amount of time to set you up.
  4. You will be sent an email confirming your data access. This email will also contain instructions on how to access the data.
  5. You will be given a Spamhaus Customer Portal account to access your service agreement, technical manual(s), contact for help, and subscription options if required.
  6. Please Note: Your contract for the Datafeed/Service is directly with Spamhaus and its Partners, and not with The Spamhaus Project. The Spamhaus Project does not have any commercial activities.

• Why have the names of the datasets and data access methods changed?

  Many of our datasets and data access methods have served users for years under technical names and acronyms. As more people start using our data, we've renamed them so it's clearer at a glance what each one is. The legacy names haven't disappeared. You'll still see them in older documentation, and we list them below so you can match old to new.

  What has changed?

  Legacy name	New name
  Data Query Service (DQS)	Blocklists via DNS Query
  Web Query Service (WQS)	Blocklists via HTTPS
  BGP Firewall	Border Gateway Protocol
  DNS Firewall	DNS Response Policy Zones
  Spamhaus Intelligence API (SIA)	Intelligence API

  Legacy name	New name
  Authentication Blocklist (AuthBL)	Bruteforce IPs
  Botnet Controller List (BCL)	Botnet C2 IPs
  Hash Blocklist (HBL)	Low Reputation Resources
  Domain Dataset	Domain Intel
  Exploits Blocklist (XBL)	Compromised IPs
  Combined Spam Sources (CSS)	Email Spam IPs
  ASN DROP	Highly Malicious ASNs
  Don't Route Or Peer (DROP)	Highly Malicious Networks
  Domain Blocklist (DBL)	Low Reputation Domains
  Spamhaus Blocklist (SBL)	Malicious Network Ranges
  Policy Blocklist (PBL)	Non-mail Emitting IPs

  Does the data or service I receive change?
  No. Only the names have changed. The data, coverage and delivery are exactly as before.

  Do I need to update my configuration?
  No action is needed.

  Have the free Spamhaus Project blocklists been renamed?
  No. The SBL, XBL, DBL, PBL, CSS and DROP keep their names on the Spamhaus Project. The new names apply only to the commercial datasets available through Spamhaus Technology.

  Have the abuse.ch platforms been renamed?
  No. MalwareBazaar, ThreatFox, URLhaus and YARAify keep their names. Commercial access to their data is described as Malware samples, Malware IOCs, Malware URLs and YARA scan results.

  Why do I still see the old names in places?
  We're updating our website, documentation and customer materials in stages, so you may come across legacy names for a while. The tables above map each one.

• Will there be service restrictions?

  Spamhaus evaluates every application to ensure the applicant is bona fide, and is not involved in the provision or support of spam services. We reserve the right to refuse a service at our discretion.

  Refusal may be due to a number of issues, including supplying to ISPs with excessive listings on any of our datasets. Everyone who uses the internet has a responsibility to keep it a safe environment. Any ISPs who we deem to have excessive abuse on their network, and are doing little to remediate the issues will not get access to our data.