Had the Bank of Bermuda been using a company like QuoVadis to screen its e-mails and stop Spam, 14 staff could have been spared the axe.

The Bermuda technology company last month began offering its customers the new Sweeper Managed E-Mail System which offers a way of stopping viruses, Spam and inappropriate content coming into a company via e-mail.

This week 14 Bank of Bermuda staff were sacked after being allegedly caught distributing pornographic e-mails. One of the bank's executive, Philip Butterfield, had sent out a warning for staff not to send chain letters, sexual material or virus warning messages.

But difficult situations such as this can be avoided by putting screening elements into a system that controls e-mails.

And QuoVadis, which also provided digital signatures and secure hosting services, has had a huge response to the new product it offers.

"It is an outsourced service for e-mail content," said Stephen Davidson, vice president of marketing and business development at QuoVadis.

"Spam is a huge problem for businesses right now, with a lot of time wasted in all kinds of different offices.

"And there are other companies that want to control the content of e-mail as well, and we can do that for them."

Mr. Davidson said that vital e-mail systems were targets for viruses, Spam and inappropriate content and in-house software solutions were complex and time-consuming to administer.

Spammers are constantly changing the way they send their mail, thwarting each and every new software as it was being installed.

But with a company like QuoVadis, they could upgrade and finely tune out the Spam as it comes in, with built in devices to recognise the unwanted mail.

Mr. Davidson said that there was also an ongoing reliance on external consultants and that failure of the system was damaging to both network and business integrity.

QuoVadis upgrades its virus software every hour or more and its Spam detecting mechanisms every half an hour, so Mr. Davidson said that this was much more than in-house and many out-source companies could manage.

"Only clean e-mail is delivered to and from your business," said Mr. Davidson.

"It is a solution to enforce corporate acceptable use policies and QuoVadis manages the service and updates.

"There is also a dependable annual cost and we can deploy IT staff on business support."

The mail is screened at the QuoVadis office.

There it controls viruses - even ones that are deeply embedded, and attachments. Content can be scanned and anything containing curses (in all languages if needed) will not be accepted and/or sent out.

"Potentially dangerous files such as executables, documents, images and videos can all be screened," said Mr. Davidson.

"It not only blocks inappropriate language but also potentially libellous or defamatory statements." He said that the blocks can be tailored to match an organisation's structure.

Organisations such as banks and other financial services companies can set the block very high at both entrance and exits. But other companies more relaxed about their policy can, say just block Spam and outgoing messages with swear words.

Blocked incoming messages are kept in a quarantine file which can easily be checked by an administrator, and outgoing mail that may have inappropriate content can either simply post up a message on screen for the sender, or send a copy on to the administrator and issue a warning to the sender.

"What it can do is eliminate damage to reputation through the misuse of email, improve operational effectiveness - as well as stopping much of the Spam that floods into offices," said Davidson.