What causes Cloudmark trap hits and how can they be resolved?

Key findings

• High volume: Cloudmark trap hits can occur in significant numbers (e.g., 175+ hits in a month), indicating a systemic issue rather than an isolated incident.
• List quality: Sending to old or unengaged email lists is a primary cause of hitting spam traps, even for senders with otherwise clean acquisition methods.
• Acquisition process: Issues like webform spam submissions or compromised sign-up processes can introduce trap addresses into legitimate mailing lists.
• Impact on deliverability: Repeated Cloudmark trap hits can lead to IP and domain blocklistings, severely affecting email inbox placement.
• Proofpoint association: Cloudmark is owned by Proofpoint, a major email security provider, meaning its blocklistings can have widespread impact across various mail providers.

Key considerations

• Data analysis: Identify the exact dates and campaigns associated with Cloudmark trap hit spikes using available deliverability data.
• List segmentation: Implement strict engagement rules and regularly segment or suppress unengaged contacts to avoid sending to dormant addresses.
• Source verification: Audit all email acquisition sources, including webforms, to prevent spam trap addresses from entering the list.
• Timely removal: Promptly remove any addresses identified as spam traps or those suspected of being traps from your mailing lists.
• Proactive monitoring: Continuously monitor your sender reputation and blocklist status to detect and address issues early, preventing severe long-term impact. You can use a dedicated service for blocklist monitoring.

Key opinions

• Sudden occurrence: Many marketers report that Cloudmark trap hits can appear suddenly, even for clients with historically clean sending practices and strict engagement rules.
• Mistaken sends: A common suspicion among marketers is that sending to an older, uncleaned list by mistake can be a primary trigger for large volumes of trap hits.
• Cycle of issues: Once trap hits begin, marketers find it challenging to break out of the resulting negative deliverability cycle, even after identifying potential causes.
• Provider influence: Marketers often inquire about which major email providers, such as Apple (via Proofpoint), utilize Cloudmark's intelligence, emphasizing the widespread impact of Cloudmark blocklistings.
• Acquisition influx: A recent influx of new contacts, particularly through webform spam submissions, is a significant concern for marketers, as it directly correlates with increased complaints and trap hits.

Key considerations

• Client communication: Marketers often face initial resistance from clients who claim no changes were made, requiring persistent inquiry to uncover the real cause.
• Auditing lists: Regularly audit and clean email lists to prevent sending to dormant or low-quality addresses that might have become spam traps. For more on this, see how to identify email spam traps.
• Webform security: Implement robust captcha and double opt-in processes on all webforms to prevent automated spam submissions from polluting lists.
• Campaign tracking: Utilize granular tracking to identify specific campaigns or dates that correlate with spikes in trap hits, aiding in diagnosis.
• Engagement rules: Reinforce and review strict engagement rules, potentially suppressing subscribers who have not engaged in a long time to mitigate risks. To learn more about common deliverability issues, read about email marketing red flags.

Key opinions

• Acquisition is key: Experts consistently state that the fundamental solution to Cloudmark trap hits is to review and rectify the email address acquisition process.
• Trap conditioning: Cloudmark is known for responsibly conditioning new trap domains for years with bounces before they become active, meaning sudden large-scale hits are unlikely due to new traps.
• Client disclosure: Experts find that clients often initially deny any changes to their sending practices, but typically reveal the true cause after persistent questioning or internal investigation.
• Mistaken imports: The most common underlying issue, even when denied, is the mistaken import or re-engagement of old, uncleaned lists containing spam traps.
• Volume matters: The scale of trap hits (e.g., one or two versus hundreds) helps experts diagnose the severity and likely cause of the issue.

Key considerations

• Internal investigation: Encourage and guide clients to perform a thorough internal review of recent list additions, sending campaigns, and data management practices.
• Address removal: The immediate action should be to identify and remove all addresses that have triggered spam traps or are suspected of being traps. This is critical for improving your IP address reputation.
• List hygiene practices: Reinforce the importance of continuous list hygiene, including validation and suppression of unengaged contacts, to prevent future trap hits. For deeper insights, explore spam traps: what they are and how they work.
• Education: Educate clients on how spam traps work and the long-term damage they can cause to sender reputation if not addressed promptly.
• Proactive strategy: Shift from reactive troubleshooting to a proactive deliverability strategy that includes regular list cleaning and monitoring for suspicious sign-ups, helping to improve overall email deliverability.

Key findings

• CSI functionality: Cloudmark Sender Intelligence (CSI) is a reputation service that identifies and blocks IP addresses and domains associated with sending spam and other malicious email.
• Data sources: Cloudmark's system relies heavily on spam trap hits and direct feedback from user complaints (feedback loops) to build its blocklists.
• Acquisition by proofpoint: Proofpoint acquired Cloudmark, integrating its powerful anti-spam capabilities into its broader security offerings, affecting a wide range of enterprises and service providers.
• Remediation focus: Documentation for resolving Cloudmark blocklistings often advises addressing fundamental mail delivery issues, such as list quality and proper sender authentication.
• Technical configurations: Incorrect technical configurations, like missing reverse DNS records, can contribute to Cloudmark listings, indicating a lack of legitimacy for the sending server.

Key considerations

• List hygiene: Maintain rigorous list hygiene, including regular removal of inactive or unengaged subscribers, to prevent hitting spam traps. Learn more about spam traps: what they are and how they work.
• Source validation: Implement stringent validation for all new subscribers, ideally using double opt-in, to ensure legitimate and engaged contacts.
• Authentication: Ensure all email authentication protocols (SPF, DKIM, DMARC) are correctly configured to prove sender legitimacy and improve deliverability.
• Monitoring metrics: Continuously monitor spam complaint rates and bounce rates, as these are strong indicators that can lead to Cloudmark listings.
• Professional assistance: If direct investigation is unsuccessful, documentation suggests seeking expert help to diagnose and resolve complex deliverability issues. For general information, review everything you need to know about RBLs.