vspam.org vs Spamhaus
Spamhaus is the industry standard for DNS-based blocklists, operating the SBL, XBL, PBL, and DBL zones used by most enterprise mail servers worldwide. vspam.org is a community-driven alternative focused on phishing-specific intelligence with open-source tooling and modern feed formats. They serve different but overlapping use cases.
Feature Comparison
| Feature | vspam.org | Spamhaus |
|---|---|---|
| Primary Focus | Phishing intelligence | Spam & botnet blocking |
| DNSBL Zones | 1 (phishing-focused) | 4+ (SBL, XBL, PBL, DBL) |
| IP Blocklist | Yes (phishing/abuse IPs) | Yes (SBL, XBL, PBL — millions of IPs) |
| Domain Blocklist | Yes | Yes (DBL) |
| URL Blocklist | Yes | No (domain-level only) |
| Pricing | Free (non-commercial) | Free < 300k queries/day; paid above |
| STIX/TAXII Feeds | Yes | Paid (Spamhaus Intelligence API) |
| Open Source | AGPL-3.0 | No |
| Community Reporting | Yes (trust-weighted) | No (curated by Spamhaus team) |
| Data Source | Community + automated honeypots | Spamtraps + research team + ISP partnerships |
| Mail Agent | Yes (vspam-agent) | No (DNSBL queries only) |
| False Positive Rate | 0.003% | Very low (not published) |
vspam.org strengths
- Phishing-specific intelligence vs Spamhaus's broader spam focus
- Community-driven reporting catches threats Spamhaus traps may miss
- Open source and fully auditable
- STIX 2.1 / TAXII 2.1 feeds included free
- URL-level blocking (not just domain-level)
- Dedicated mail agent with local caching and fail-open design
- No query volume restrictions for non-commercial use
Spamhaus strengths
- Industry standard — used by the majority of enterprise mail servers
- Massive IP blocklist coverage (SBL + XBL + PBL)
- 25+ years of operational data and reputation
- Professional research team with ISP partnerships
- Multiple specialized zones for different threat types
- Near-zero false positive rate with extensive whitelisting
- Geolocation and ASN-level intelligence
When to Use Each
Choose vspam.org
Choose vspam.org if you want phishing-focused intelligence, community-driven threat data, open-source tooling, or STIX/TAXII feeds without a paid subscription. Best as a complement to Spamhaus for additional phishing coverage.
Choose Spamhaus
Choose Spamhaus if you need comprehensive spam and botnet blocking, industry-standard DNSBL zones, or enterprise-grade IP reputation data. Spamhaus is the baseline for any serious mail server deployment.
Verdict
These platforms are complementary rather than competitive. Spamhaus excels at broad spam and botnet blocking with its massive IP intelligence. vspam.org adds phishing-specific URL and email sender intelligence that Spamhaus doesn't cover. Our DNSBL effectiveness study showed that combining vspam.org with existing RBLs provided 12% additional unique threat coverage. Use both.