OpenDNS Summer Newsletter

June 21st, 2008 · No Comments

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1. 50+ Filtering Categories
2. SysAdmin Appreciation Party
3. PC World: OpenDNS Best of ‘08
4. Spotlight: Regence Blue Cross
5. Five Questions: Jonathan Yaniv
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1. Free Web Filtering – More than 50 categories
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Have you logged into your Dashboard lately? If you have you’ve seen there are now 54 filtering categories available. That’s a lot of categories! And the best part — all OpenDNS filtering is completely free and doesn’t require an expensive appliance. Our filtering is powered by the OpenDNS Domain Tagging System and is more comprehensive, faster-moving and less expensive than any other service. Heck, it’s so good some of the largest school districts in the country use it to keep their students safe online.
Speaking of schools, did you catch our announcement that more than 10,000 schools are using OpenDNS? 10,000!
If you’re not yet using OpenDNS filtering, try it out!
https://www.opendns.com/dashboard/signin
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2. SysAdmin Appreciation Day Party // OpenDNS 2nd Bday
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SysAdmin Appreciation Day is just around the corner and we’re showing the love. Join us at Fluid in San Francisco on July 23 for a celebration that any SysAdmin could surely appreciate. There’ll be good drinks, great company and some cool souvenirs as parting gifts as we toast the SysAdmins who keep the Internets running. And you don’t have to be a SysAdmin to come to this party — Friends of OpenDNS are welcome as we also tip our hat to celebrate our 2nd birthday. If you think you can make it, register here:
http://opendns-sysadmin-day-party.eventbrite.com/
Psst, also stay tuned for some more SysAdmin Appreciation goodies in July.
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3. PC World: “OpenDNS’s PhishTank Best of 2008”
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Word came last week that PC World, THE PC World, recognized PhishTank with its highest honor. The magazine named PhishTank one of the Best Products of 2008. The great thing about that is you’re already getting all the benefits. When you set up OpenDNS you get phishing protection powered by OpenDNS’s PhishTank on by default.
Oh, and that CNET Webware award we asked you to vote on? We won that one, too. Thanks for all your votes! Doesn’t that make you feel good about choosing OpenDNS?
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4. Customer Spotlight: Regence Blue Cross // Blue Shield
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The largest health insurer in the Northwest United States, Regence Blue Cross spans four states and provides insurance for a customer base 3 million members strong. The not-for-profit organization offers individual and group medical, dental, vision and life insurance, Medicare and other government programs and pharmacy benefits. Anti-phishing and network security are among top priorities for Regence, and its BlueCoat appliance just wasn’t cutting it. Network Admin Charles Koenig read about OpenDNS and decided to give us a shot. Since making the switch, Koenig says the total number of security-related incidents has gone way down.
"I recommend OpenDNS as a resource to everyone I know," says Koenig.
Thanks Charles!
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5. Five Questions: Jonathan Yaniv
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The single most active community member in the Domain Tagging system, Jonathan Yaniv is the man to thank for more than 300,000 domain submissions. We caught up with him this week and got answers to important questions, like how he manages to fit so much in a day. Check it out:
OpenDNS: Thanks for taking the time to catch up with us, Jonthan. First things first. Your fans want to know — who is the real Jonathan Yaniv?
JY: Happy to do it. I am both a student and technology enthusiast. I entered Kwantlen Polytechnic University (KPU) in the fall with a memorial award to support my education. Being enrolled in the Computer Information Systems (CISY) diploma program at Kwantlen Polytechnic University (KPU) has taught me all sorts of new skills that will help me achieve my long-term goal of working in the IT field. Oh, and hobbies… all my favorite activities are computer related.
OpenDNS: Awesome. How did you first get into domain tagging? And how many domains have you voted on to date?
JY: I started using OpenDNS in August 2007 and immediately took advantage of its filtering functionality. But in the early days you could only block 50 domains. I wanted to block more and so was excited when the Domain Tagging system launched. I submitted lists of sites into OpenDNS where they could get tagged and voted on by other OpenDNS community members. To answer your question about how many domains I have voted up to date, close to 750,000 domains, submitting close to 320,000 new domains into the domain tagging system (which also counts as a vote), and voting on close to 430,000 already tagged domains.
OpenDNS: Wow! So we have our own reasons, but we want to hear from you: Why is domain tagging so important for the Internet?
JY: Domain tagging is so important for the Internet because it’s people powered. No computer is perfect, no computer will ever be able to identify every adware, malware or pornographic site. New ones pop up every day, some small scale, some large scale, and often times, especially with malware and adware sites, the small scale sites can cause the most devastation. Allowing users to submit their own personal experiences about domains they have visited into their appropriate categories is what creates a very robust security solution. This is what sets OpenDNS apart from others, and this is why OpenDNS gets better each and every day.
OpenDNS: How do you find the time to vote on domains? It seems like you are a very busy man!
JY: Indeed, I am a very busy person! I vote on domains during my spare time. I’ve turned domain tagging into a hobby. Not only do I tag sites but I’ve actually discovered of a lot of new sites by tagging so many domains.
OpenDNS: Do you have any advice for people who aren’t yet using OpenDNS?
JY: Yes, I do. I highly suggest that you give OpenDNS a try. It doesn’t cost you a penny, and it’s SO easy to set up. Once you start using OpenDNS and its features you’ll see the difference and you’ll be thinking, ‘why haven’t I used OpenDNS before?’ OpenDNS helps get rid of the ‘Internet Bad Guys.’ Lets get rid of them all! Help yourself out and help others out!
Thanks again Jonathan! And thanks all of you!
Keep sending us those queries!
Allison Rhodes
Director, External Marketing
allison@opendns.com
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