Stop Spam

Junk email, or "Spam " as it is commonly known, is a major annoyance. Spam is typically used for mass marketing to get readers to purchase products or services, or to promote some sort of scam. Spam resembles junk snailmail that is sent to our homes and offices each day, is hard to trace and is virtually free to send.

Are we able to stop spam? No. But there are some things that can be done to reduce the amount of spam over the Internet. For instance, a volunteer force of “spam police” has formed to create a “blacklist” database. This blacklist includes Internet providers who don’t follow rules for locking their email servers to prevent use by random hackers. These “spam police” work together to monitor security of servers and prevent the offending Internet providers from sending email.

Are there measures you, as an email user, can take to cut down on spam? Yes! Number one rule – NEVER, EVER PUBLISH YOUR EMAIL ADDRESS UNLESS YOU REALLY WANT EMAIL

Of course you want to receive email. But, you can cut down on spam by having two accounts. Separate your work account from your “play” account. Create a “play” email account through some free service such as yahoo, hotmail, etc. and use that account to surf the net where you might leave your email address behind (such as downloading software or “registering” for something). Anytime you register your address, there is the potential that your address will be put on a myriad of lists, legitimate or spammer.

Never publish your work email address online unless you really do want email from the registering site. During registration, look for and uncheck all boxes related to receiving news, special offers, etc. Again, the golden rule of spam prevention: never, ever publish your email address while surfing the net.

Why can't we just create a program to delete spam messages? Spammers are very good at disguising their messages. They can title the emails in such a way that it looks as if a friend were sending you the message (i.e. "Hey so-and-so", "Please call me", "We need to talk"). Unfortunately, it is very difficult to develop a program that can interpret incoming mail and make decisions about deletions. And who would trust a program like that anyway? You could easily end up missing legitimate email.

The traditional postal system hasn’t figured out how to get rid of junk mail, and we’re still bombarded by telemarketing as well. But IT professionals around the globe are aggressively pursuing solutions to the growing problem of spam everyday. Progress is being made, and as the system matures, hopefully, the spam police will be able to jump one step ahead of those nasty spammers!

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