Spam Nightmares
Spam on the Internet stands for Unsolicited Commercial
Email or "UCE". UCE sounds nothing like spam so how come
it is referred to as Spam you may ask? There is some debate about
the source of the term, but the generally accepted version is that
it comes from the Monty Python song, "Spam spam spam spam,
spam spam spam spam, lovely spam, wonderful spam
". In
the skit, the word spam is said 104 times in 2.5 minutes while they
are trying to decide what to eat from a menu consisting of nothing
but Spam. Like the song, spam is an endless repetition of worthless
text, which is exactly what most spam is.
Spam imposes a cost on those of us who do not like
to get it. We spend time sorting through our email and deleting
spam. Spam also uses up bandwidth and storage space at Internet
Service Providers (ISPs). Without spam, they could operate with
less capacity, and they could pass along the reduced costs to consumers.
Chances are that if you have an email address you
have gotten spam in the past. Spam, in it's simplest form, is email
that you get that is trying to sell you something, or trying to
get you to do something, from somebody that you do not know and
you did not subscribe to. The statistics show that individuals are
expected to receive, on average, 2,800 pieces of unsolicited e-mail
this year. By 2008, that number is expected to grow to more than
4,400. That's getting a little out of control for the majority of
Internet users. Getting on a Spammers list is very tough to avoid
but there are some things that can be done to keep it to a minimum.
First
of all, try to keep your main email address off of a Spammers list
by getting a Hotmail or Yahoo mail account for a catchall. Use that
account for general Internet use. General Internet use would be
using your email address to for a confirmation to download some
trial software or signing up for a forum or newsletter. You could
always get your own Domain
Name and use that as your main account (e.g. you@yourname.com).
Use your main account, the one you get from your domain or ISP,
for friends, family and businesses that you know you can trust.
If you start getting too much spam in the general account, and you
will, you can always delete it and create another one.
If you are already getting a lot of spam, it probably
means that you are already on a Spammers "live" list and
once you are on a list it is very tough to get off from it. There
is still hope though. The best thing to do if you are getting unsolicited
email is to just delete it. Don't open it. Don't reply to it and
especially don't try to opt-out of it. Because if you open it, you
could send back a piece of code saying that they have found a live
address. The same goes for replying and opting out. It will only
tell the Spammers that they have a "live" address and
they will sell your address to another spammer and on and on. It
will never end, just like a nightmare. The absolute worst thing
you can do is buy merchandise from a spammer. Aside from encouraging
the Spammers, this also makes more of your identity available to
them. It also can guarantee that you will get more spam at your
email address.
Another way to avoid it is to use your email application's
filtering features. Most email applications allow you to block specific
messages. When you get an email that you know is spam just set the
filter to block any further incoming mails from that sender. See
the Help files of your email application for more information on
blocking unwanted emails. Some Internet Service providers now have
filters that will block known spammers addresses. The only problem
with these techniques is that the spammers are constantly changing
their servers and addresses, which makes these techniques very hard
to keep up to date. Here are some more detailed tips on how to control
Spam.
6 Tips to avoid being found
by Spammers
4 Ways to Reduce Spam
5 Steps to take if Spam is already overflowing
your Inbox
7 Steps to Take to Save Your Inbox from Spam
Another alternative would be an email-filtering
program. Of course, neither a service nor a program can be a
total defense against spam due to the nature of the beast. We can
find ways to avoid spam and the Spammers find ways around our fixes.
It is a never-ending battle against these devious creatures. Remember
the basics, try not to get on a list, delete spam when you receive
it, and don't buy anything from them, and that should be a great
help in keeping your inbox nightmare free.
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