Don't like Spam? Neither do we.
Here's what we do to help filter spam. Continue reading below for
TIPS on how you can help reduce the amount
of spam that you receive in the future.
We wanted to clear up some misunderstandings regarding the problem
of spam (junk email) on the Internet, as well as provide some tips
that can help you reduce the amount of spam that you receive in
the future.
As you know, we recently implemented a system to reduce the amount
of spam delivered to your mailbox. Before email is accepted by our
server, we consult a "blacklist" and block any mail sent
from servers that are known sources of spam, including servers that
are misconfigured in such a way that they allow spammers to hijack
them. Tap here -> Spam
Policy to view our system.
This is a very effective way to combat spam that is used by many
ISPs. However, there is no way to eliminate spam entirely, just
like there is no way to eliminate junk mail that is sent to you
through the Post Office. Just as the Post Office delivers all mail
that is addressed to you, we will deliver email, including spam,
that is addressed specifically to you.
This brings up one important misconception regarding spam. People
ask why they get spam that is not addressed to them. While it may
appear that the spam is not addressed to you, it always is. Spammers
often hide your address by putting a forged name in the "To:"
field and putting your real address in the "BCC:" field,
which is quite simple to do.
Unfortunately, spam will be a problem that all ISPs must deal with
for the foreseeable future. A spammer can send hundreds of thousands
of spam messages practically for free. You can imagine the amount
of junk mail you would receive at your home if postage were free.
In addition, with many people out of work, the dream of quick wealth
has encouraged more people to send spam and more people to respond
to spam (which in turn encourages more spam).
Still, there are some things you can do to help reduce the amount
of spam that you receive in the future. Following are some important
tips so that you do not make the problem worse.
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What is Spam and
why do companies continue to send it?
There is no exact definition of "spam", but in general
terms spam is any email you did not ask for, but get, from people
you do not know who want to sell something to you. It is sent not
only to you but to every single email address the spammer can get
hold of.
Heinz Tschabitscher, spam expert from About.com,
says that, "Typically speaking, products offered by spammers
really need to be marketed by obtrusive measures like spam. Particularly
interesting are those that try to sell mailing lists of people "interested"
in a particular product, mailing lists that you are in fact a victim
of."
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Why is Spam Bad?
"The only reason that spam exists is that it works. And
as long as it works it will be with us," says Mr. Tschabitscher.
When people purchase items from spammers it perpetuates the problem
because as long as it's working the spammers will not stop spamming.
The most effective step to stop unsolicited email altogether should
be to make sure it is no success.
One reason it works is because mass mailings - aka Bulk Mail -
is cheap. If out of 20,000 mailings seven potential customes think
receiving the spam mail was a good idea, and the product is an even
better idea, and if out of the seven who respond only one buys something,
it may have been a successful afternoon for the spammer. Unfortunately,
it was not a successful afternoon for the 19, 993 other people who
had to deal with the spam mail.
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Spam is Cost Efficient
It costs very little to send a huge amount of email. Every receiver,
however, pays with money, time and resources for something they
never asked for and do not want. Even if the average email receipient
does not pay for the time connected (to download mail), they must
read the junk and throw it away or set up filters, all time consuming
and unnecessary annoyances. Additionally, ISPs have to transport
all the bulk mail and in the end the users have to pay for that
service. A vicious cycle indeed.
Here are some well-known Spam Filtering Programs.
1) SpamDetective
Fuzzy logic is one of best anti-spam technologies available today.
Try it with the wonderful SpamDetective, a highly effective and
useful anti-spam tool.
2) SpamEater Pro
This great anti-spam tool not only removes junk before it reaches
your email Inbox, it also has the capability to efficiently complain
about it.
3) SayNoToSpam
Say no to spam and let the SayNoToSpam professionals filter out
spam and viruses before they reach your computer.
4) SpamKiller
SpamKiller is a powerful and sophisticated anti-spam tool that is
still easy to use and gets the job done.
5) SpamWeasel
With a full-fledged scripting language for filters, SpamWeasel is
one of the most powerful anti-spam tools. While it works great out
of the box, writing new filters isn't easy.
6) MailWasher
Powerful, elegant and effective spam filtering solution. Great choice
if you use POP.
7) Email Express!
Try a sophisticated and powerful (albeit a bit cumbersome to configure)
tool that uses numerous methods to allow no spam into your Inbox
while delivering all the good mail.
8) SpamBurner
SpamBurner is easy to use, and it will efficiently burn lots of
spam for you.
9) InBox Filter
Easy to use InBox Filter can help you filtering your email account
of spam.
10) Postal Inspector for Outlook Express
Postal Inspector enhances your Outlook Express with comprehensive
anti-spam filters and keeps them up to date automatically.
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Tips to Reduce Spam Email
- Never buy anything
from a spam offer. That would only encourage them, as well as
make you an easy mark for much more spam in the future. If no
one ever bought anything from a spam offer, the problem would
go away on its own. More importantly, reputable companies rarely
send out unsolicited mail, so the vast majority of the spam you
get is from unscrupulous individuals that aim to take advantage
of you.
- Never reply in
any way. Don't reply to be taken off their list, and don't go
to any links that they provide for you to supposedly unsubscribe.
If you do, you are actually telling them that your email address
is an active one. They will send you even more spam and probably
sell your address to other spammers at a premium price. Some spam
is sent strictly for that purpose -- so that you will confirm
your address is good by unsubscribing. Don't do it. You will get
more spam than ever. The only exception is if you know and trust
the organization, and are confident that they are a reputable
company that will honor your request to be removed from their
list.
- If you enter a
lot of contests, or register for coupons or gifts, you may be
registering for more spam. You should check the reputation of
any company that you give personal information to, even if it
is just your email address. Also, read their privacy policies
carefully. Look for those hidden check boxes that say you agree
to receive email from their partners. They are usually pre-checked,
and they are hard to find for a reason. In general, the more things
you sign up for on-line, the more spam you will get over time.
- If you list your
email address in places such as Web based discussion groups, message
boards, or Usenet Newsgroups, you will get more spam. Similarly,
if your email address is listed as a point of contact on a Web
page or elsewhere on the Internet, that will increase your spam.
Spammers have programs that "harvest" email addresses
from Web Pages, Newsgroups, and other public areas on the Internet.
- Consider keeping
your main email address as private and "unlisted" as
possible, and get a second mailbox for your public email presence.
Give your private address to friends only. You would use your
public address for registering with Web sites, or for posting
on Newsgroups and message boards. You can check your public account
a few times a month to make sure there is nothing in there that
you really need. You will be surprised at the amount of spam that
starts to pile up in there, and will be thankful that it is not
filling up your main mailbox. If the amount of spam to your public
address gets to be too much, you can change the login name to
something else.
-
Consider
using disposable email addresses. Several companies offer email
addresses that you can use specifically for fighting spam. One
benefit of a disposable address over a second public email address
is that the disposable address is configured to forward to your
normal email account. This way you only have to check email
in one place. This is particularly helpful if there is email
from that source that you do want to receive, such as a newsletter
or email list. You should use a different disposable address
every time you register for something that requires your email
address, or on every message board or Newsgroup on which you
post.
If you start getting spam delivered to one of your disposable
addresses, you can easily turn off that specific address (along
with any spam sent to that address). Not only that, you will
be able to see from what source the spammer got your address.
Two organizations that provide up to 500 disposable addresses
for a small fee are SpamCon
and SpamEx
.
SpamCon also provides up to three disposable addresses for free.
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