This document was jointly developed by the Anti-Phishing Working Group (APWG) and M3AAWG with technical and business practices to help ISPs and mailbox providers thwart phishing attacks and other malevolent network abuses.  It also includes practices to respond constructively when these attacks occur. Version 2.01 updates the anti-phishing best practices originally published in 2006.

System abuse drains time and revenue for hosting and cloud providers, who must maintain constant vigilance to make sure their systems are not compromised and ensure that their customers are vigilant. This document categorizes types of abuse, suggests appropriate responses and reviews practices for dealing with customers and complaints. It provides current best common practices in use with the hosting, DNS and domain registration provider communities.