The latest buzz in spam protection is around Spam Cube – an apparent cyberbug zapper. Plugged into your computer, the big square box requires no software or installation.
Soon to be out of beta testing, early reviews are largely positive (meaning sold out), but there is the quiet voice in the background that says it works a little too well.
The device, when connected to your computer, is also connected to their computer, which is uses artificial intelligence to regularly update spam information. The folks at Spam Cube say there is no human operation on their end and that user filters can also be set.
It is plug and play, running in the background blocking spam from your computer’s inbox. And it learns from users:
[R]epresentatives from Spam Cube, the company, are fairly bursting with pride over its artificial-intelligence circuitry. Whenever the Spam Cube makes a mistake in the Outlook or Outlook Express e-mail programs, identifying real mail as spam or vice versa, you’re supposed to scold it by clicking “This is Spam” and “This is Not Spam” buttons on the toolbar. Over time, as thousands of people supply that Spam/Not Spam feedback, the Cube is supposed to become better and better at recognizing spam, fine-tuning its database to counter the latest spammer tactics.
Running at $150, the Cube requires no subscription fee and boasts of simple installation that protects up to four computers. For an additional $52 per year, users can get “Fortune 500 level” protection for home computers through subscription to Security OnDemand.
The subscription feature makes use of McAfee and Norton Anti-Virus protection to zap worms and viruses; and Spam Cube’s own anti-phishing technology.
Engadget’s Evan Blass reports a couple of drawbacks. It has compatibility issues with non-Outlook email programs, though Spam Cube has said it will work with even web-based email. The homepage lists Yahoo! Mail and Gmail among its qualified email programs.
Second, according to Blass, Spam Cube “flagged an unacceptable number of legit messages as spam.”
The device is still in beta, though, and perhaps these issues will have been resolved before it is officially available en masse.
For those sensitive to home dcor computing, it comes in five different colors: white, yellow, titanium, pink, and black. If the colors don’t mute the effect of a bulky cube tacked onto your PC (the design is a little frivolous, apparently there’s not much inside), maybe one day they’ll release decorative Cube covers like they make for tissue boxes.
