How to fight Spam! l Smart Women Stupid Computers

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Spam is the scourge of the Internet!

According to recent statistics, an incredible 75-80% of all

email can be classified as Spam!

The dictionary defines Spam simply as “unsolicited email,” but it’s much worse than that. It is a direct invasion into your privacy. Just like junk snail-mail, junk email takes up space in your mailbox , wastes your time and is a general nuisance.

How On Earth Did They Get My Email Address???

How do all these scammers get my address when I didn’t give it to them?

Well, the bad news is that once your email is posted anywhere public on the web, your address becomes fair game for all.

Spammers are exceptionally creative when it comes to getting information they know that people don’t want them to have. The ingenious use of special programs and "harvesting robots” sniff out thousands of websites. They collect any and all email addresses they find, including yours.

Unfortunately, this includes legitimate, often necessary lists, like any parent volunteer lists or school activities with contact information posted on a website. Any sports team lists, any type of hobby forums or newsgroups where you allow your email to be public will place you at risk. Even your job may post employee emails somewhere that is publicly accessible.

People who create Spam lists hunt for all these options and more. They plan to exploit your email address as much as possible.

Spammers were cunning enough realize how valuable a list of legitimate email addresses are an asset simply waiting to be sold! They stop at nothing to find every possible way to root out information.

A Spammer typically sells multiple lists of email addresses. Once your email address is on one list, it is often merged with others and resold repeatedly. In the worst case, your

email becomes virtually impossible to remove. Often changing your email is your only recourse.

But until they begin receiving the dreaded Spam, most people have no clue that their addresses have been found, harvested and sold.

*** Never Opt-Out of lists you did not Opt-Into!. ***

Update

I started actually using the opt out in much of the spam I receive and it seems to be reducing my spam by about 60%, so I'm not sure if this old rule still applies.

When You Sign Up For Anything, Read The Privacy Policy!

This is your best chance to legitimately opt-out of mailings.

Often when you sign up at a website on the Internet or enter contests, at the end of the sign up, there will be a box allowing you to "opt out" of further emails or selling your email address to "interested parties"

This is a legitimate way to keep down your Spam.

Unfortunately those cunning Spammers realize many people have no idea if they signed up , or where they have been, so they send fake "opt out, opt in" emails asking you to click the link to do either.

Once you reply to this email, the Spammer learns:

Your email is live and valid

You open and read Spam

You follow instructions…such as ‘click this to be removed.’

By trying to get rid of Spam, you become the perfect target for more Spam! Ironic, isn’t it?

In January 2004, a Federal anti-Spam law went into effect. “The Can Spam Act” required a functioning "opt out" link or a legitimate "reply to unsubscribe" email address.

Dictionary Attack

Another favorite tactic of Spammers is the “Dictionary Attack.” Massive amounts of Spam are sent to random addresses from a targeted domain. Automated software will generate every combination of a name, such as jjones@____ , jjones1@___ , jjones2@___ etc.

The hope is that some of it –even a small percentage- gets through to valid addresses. Spammers wait to get a ‘bounced message,’ or ‘error message’ that says the email isn’t valid. When that doesn’t happen- guess what—your address has just been just been “confirmed live” and will be added to their email list, which they will sell for money.

Why doesn’t blocking this junk email with your email message settings stop this? Because Spammers use fake names and fake return addresses, and they rarely use the same ones twice.

Prevent Spam! Get multiple email addresses!

Paid providers allow you multiple addresses.

Get two, three or even four addresses.

(Some people don’t even know this is available from your provider.)

Have a ‘Spam’ address for anticipated Spam mail.

Whenever you are asked to provide an email, always give out your alternate "Spam" email address.

I have one for pure Spam, like contests, product advertising and samples, general information websites, like

Real estate or home improvement sites.

Then I have an email for my purchases on the web.

Then I have an email for business only.

One for friends.

If having multiple emails is not an option or provided for you, two large reputable companies offer free email addresses. Check out www.hotmail.comat MSN and

www.mail.yahoo.com at Yahoo.

(Did you ever wonder why so many emails end in ___@hotmail.com or ___@yahoo.com? Now you know!)

Or you can Google “free email account” to find hundreds of other choices. They’re offered free to get you and your wallet to their website and their advertisers.

Why Do I Need Different Email Accounts?

To keep your legitimate, live address from falling into the hands of unscrupulous Spammers.

As you find interesting Internet sites, appealing offers or contests you want to enter, don’t use your primary email address. When your children sign up at websites like

have them use a second- or third- email account.

Use a secondary account anytime you give your email address to anyone other then family and friends.

Limit your primary email to personal or business correspondence.

Otherwise, you will join the ranks of people wasting time opening Spam.

A quick word here on forwarding email to mass/bulk addresses:

Please don’t do it!

Constant forwarding clutters up peoples Inbox, and it is intrusive. Remember that Spammers siphon off addresses from “group” emails.

Beware of chain letters!

Guess where else Spammers collect address? You got it- from all those relentless chain letters. If any of these fall into a Spammers hand you can forget

bad luck. Instead of missing out on some great opportunity if you don’t forward a chain letter to ten of your friends, (thus giving out ten live addresses) those annoying chain letters circulating the Internet could be cursing you with an Inboxstuffed with Spam!

Recently I had to create yet another email address for friends who insist on mass forwarding me and others every rumor.

Such as the one that said your cell phone number needs to go on the "do not call" list, (this is false) mass prayers, chain letters, (where I surely should be dead by now for all the ones I have deleted!) angel blessings , poems, jokes, cute photos of animals and children that come their way.

Check out common email ‘urban legends’ like the cell phone one or the one that says aspartame gives you MS. at www.snopes.comYou’ll quickly discover if that “dire warning” your friend sent you is indeed something to worry about.

Read some good info about spam and report fraud spam hereat the FBI website

Then there are ‘spiders.’ No, not our 8 legged crawly friends. These "spiders" automatically crawl the Web in search of addresses. These are automated programs

also called "bots" that harvest any email address they find published on the Web.

Use a second or third or fourth email address for any public forums or venues.

Ask family and friends to not give out your email and to not or sign you up or refer you for anything online. (Just like they wouldn’t give out your telephone number.)

Do not post your primary email address on websites,

Newsgroups, forums, chat rooms or bulletin boards.

· If you do need to use your primary email in a public way, write out the @ symbol it to at.. For example, instead of abc@def.com , write abcatdef._at com.

Removing the @ symbol makes it more difficult for automatic Spam harvesting software to pick email addresses.

· And do this for addresses on your own Web page!

Never Never Never:

Never forward chain letters.

Never add your name to mass group mailings. Never send out a group mailing with all your friends’ emails listed in the CC: at the top.

Respect others right to privacy by not giving out their email in mass emails

If you find something worth passing on, something that good, email it to one person at a time using the BCC feature all email programs offer.

USING BCC Blind Carbon Copy. ( this is for outlook)

To send an e-mail message

On the toolbar, click the Create Mail button.

In the To or Cc boxes, type the e-mail name of each recipient, separating names with a comma or a semicolon ( ; ).

To add e-mail names from the Address Book, click the book icon in the New Message window next to To, Cc, and Bcc, and then select names.

To use the Bcc box, on the View menu, select All Headers.

In the Subject box, type a message title.

Type your message, and then click Send on the toolbar.

This will allow you to still send your mass emails, while respecting the right to privacy and protecting all your recipients email addresses.

All my suggestions will certainly help protect you and cut down on your Spam. Unfortunately, Spammers are often criminals, and they are getting more sophisticated at finding ways into your Inbox

If you are still inundated with Spam, change your email address. Start over fresh, armed with this new prevention.

Be cautious when giving out your email address.

Email is a wonderful way to contact others and keep in touch. Be safe and enjoy!