Creating an Outlook Rule
to filter out unwanted E-mail Messages

E-mail arriving for cua.edu is filtered through an antispam appliance.  This machine automatically scans each message to determine if it might be spam.  If it is suspicious enough, the appliance modifies the Subject: line of the message to prepend the phrase "[Spam]".  By doing this, possible spam messages are marked so that you can determine how to handle them.

One useful technique is to write an e-mail filter rule to move all such messages into the Deleted Items or other folder (such as Junk E-mail) so that those messages are not mixed in with your regular Inbox messages.

This document describes how to create such a rule in the Microsoft Exchange webmail (OWA) interface, and in Microsoft Outlook.

Webmail (OWA)

If you are using Microsoft Windows, use Internet Explorer to log onto CUA Webmail (mail.cua.edu).  This particular webmail feature does not work in other browsers.

Select Rules from the left side navigation bar. Click the New button to create a new rule.

Specify the name of the rule. List [Spam] in the Where the Subject contains field.

Select the Move it to the specified folder option and click the "specified" link. Select the Junk E-Mail folder.

Save and Close the rule.

Microsoft Outlook

This Microsoft Outlook Rule can be used to move all e-mail messages flagged as spam into your Deleted Items folder automatically as they are received.

Press the New button to begin creating your new rule.

Select Move messages based on content. (Or, in Outlook 2003, select Move messages with specific words in the subject to a folder.)

In the lower box, click on Specific Words.

In the pop-up window, type [Spam] and click the Add button to add it to the search list. Click OK.

You are now back to the main rules wizard page. Click on the specified folder link in the lower box.

Select the Deleted Items folder and click "OK".  (Another good folder choice is Outlook 2003's Junk E-Mail folder.)

Click "Next" 4 times to cycle through any additional choices or exceptions that you may want to add. In the final box check the box that says to Run this rule now on messages already in Inbox and click finish.

Any messages that contain the text that has been specified will automatically be moved into the Deleted Items folder upon their delivery to you.