StreetWise Home > Remar's Reviews Archives > Spam Jamming Your Email Inbox—What You Can Do About It

Spam Jamming Your Email Inbox—What You Can Do About It

By Remar Sutton, DCU StreetWise Spokesperson

Email has become a necessary communication link for millions of Americans—at work, at home, at school. But as the email you want has grown, the quantity of junk email, called spam, that most email addresses receive has skyrocketed. Not only is such junk email an annoyance, but it can be dangerous because it may contain links to unsavory websites you would not want to see and certainly don't want your children to have access to. It may come bearing a virus or offering a scam. Spam has become such a problem that industry officials, the FTC, and Congress are debating possible steps that might be taken to help cut off the flow. In the meantime, this review will give you information and some steps you can take to protect yourself and your family.

What is spam email? The simplest definition is email that was not requested. It's also known as unsolicited commercial email (UCE), unsolicited bulk email (UBE) or just plain junk email. Spam can also contain scams.

How did they get your email address?

Email addresses are collected in many ways. They are collected from web pages, forums, newsgroups, chat rooms, and so forth. Some spammers send email to large ISPs using many possible name combinations to try and find valid addresses. This is called a "dictionary attack". Some websites sell the email addresses they collect from users of the site. A good rule of thumb: If it's posted on the Internet, then a spammer can probably find it.

How to reduce your chance of getting spam.

Always read a site's privacy policy before providing any information—even if you initiated the search. Look for statements such as "we do not share, rent or sell" your personal information. Watch out for exceptions such as sharing with partners or affiliates. Never share unnecessary personal information.
Read the entire page when filling out forms. Look for opt-out or opt-in check boxes. Those sites who use opt-in check boxes may already have them checked; you have to uncheck the box to opt out. You may have to scroll down to find these boxes. Some sites may even put the boxes below the Submit or Send button.
Consider using throw-away email addresses. A disposable email address service creates email addresses that forward to your permanent account. Cancel a throw-away address when it starts getting too much spam. (See the next section for how.)
Use a separate screen name or email address for chatting and newsgroups.
Make your email address hard to guess by using letters and numbers. This can reduce the chance a dictionary attack will find your address.
Don't open email unless you know who sent it and are expecting it. Some spammers use a link to a picture to report a valid email address. These links are called Web Beacons or Web Bugs.
Opt out of member directories for your online services.
Don't reply to or use the "remove me" link in a spam email. This tactic is simply a way of verifying they have a working address.

Sources for additional email addresses

Many ISPs provide several email addresses or screen names with an account. Check out your ISP's account management area to determine how many addresses you can have and how to set them up.

Another option is using a web-based email account. There are many available. Very popular ones include Hotmail and Yahoo. If you use a free email account, review all the account settings and preferences (look for marketing settings/preferences too) and make sure you aren't signing up for spam along with the account. Note that some online merchants may not accept email accounts from particular domains such as free email services.

Disposable Email Address services provide email addresses that can be used instead of your real address. Any email received at the disposable email address is forwarded to an email address you specify. A sample of services include:

Spamex costs $9.95 per year with a 30-day free trial.
spamgourmet is free.
Emailias costs $19.95 per year with a 60-day free trial. 1-month and 3-month memberships are available for $4.95 and $9.95.

Ways to handle the spam you're getting

There are multiple ways to handle the deluge of spam coming into your inbox. You may even want to use a multi-step approach.

Start with checking if your ISP provides any junk mail filters. If so, then determine if you want to use it by reading how it works and what you need to do to use it.
The next step is to use the filtering capability in your email program.
Finally, you may want to use a blocking and filtering product or service.

Email program filtering

Email programs provide various filtering capability. Some allow you to make elaborate rules or filters. Others provide very rudimentary filters. Some are harder to master than others.

Filters can be used to sort your mail into various folders including the trash. For details on how to set up the filters or rules in your program, use the program help, user's guide, and/or website.

Here are several email programs with good filtering capabilities:

PocoMail costs $39.95 and has good security plus a built-in junk mail filter.
Pegasus Mail is free and is also known for good security.
Eudora 6 costs $49.95 and includes SpamWatch which automatically filters junk mail into a "junk" mailbox.

Spam blocking and filtering products and services

There are numerous products and services available — free and pay — that may help control the spam reaching your inbox. Many products reside on your computer and work with your email program. Others are services that don't require any software on your computer to work. Many work only with a specific email program or specific type of email. No product or service is perfect—incorrect tagging or trashing of email does occur, so look for one that allows you control over the process or at least allows you to review the culled messages before they are deleted.

Before choosing a product or service determine what type of email you have. Various types include POP3, IMAP, web-based, AOL, MSN, Juno, Hotmail, Yahoo, and others. If you don't know what type you have, check with your ISP (check the customer service web page for starters).

Some filter, some just tag messages. Various methods used include:

Black lists - lists of addresses and/or domains that won't be accepted. Compiled lists can be problematic especially if they come from an overzealous anti-spam group
White lists - lists of addresses to accept.
Bad word lists. Too broad a list can catch legitimate email.
Bayesian filters - a statistical analysis technique that "learns" to differentiate between real mail and spam. A new method that is showing lots of promise.
Challenge-response system - the unknown sender of an email has to prove they sent it and aren't a spammer. This can be an annoyance to new contacts.

Make sure you choose a program that uses a combination of methods. If you receive email newsletters, you want to make sure to choose one that allows you to control the process. Many newsletters have had problems with spam blockers inappropriately blocking delivery.

The Tips and help for regular users page at spam.abuse.net has a list of spam email blocking and filtering products and services. Information provided for each item include operating system, a short description, and whether it is a product or service. The list also includes tutorials for setting up filters in email programs such as Outlook, Outlook Express, Eudora, and procmail.

Here are a couple of products that have garnered good reviews:

SpamKiller ($39.95) from McAfee Security works with a POP3, MSN/Hotmail or MAPI email account. It does not work with AOL, Yahoo, or other web-based email. It runs under Windows 98, NT4, ME, 2000, and XP.
MailWasher (free) and MailWasher Pro ($37) works with POP3 email accounts. The Pro version accesses AOL, MSN, Hotmail, and IMAP accounts. MailWasher is used prior to opening your email program. It runs under Windows 95, 98, NT, ME, 2000, and XP.

Additional Resources

GetNetWise's About... Spam page lists tips, tools, and actions you can take.

Spam from the FTC has lots of information and resources.

Fight Spam on the Internet! has been called one of the best anti-spam sites on the Internet. It's loaded with useful information and links.

CAUCE is the Coalition Against Unsolicited Commercial Email. The site provides information about the problems of junk email, some proposed solutions and other resources.

Stop Spam from Internet Scambusters contains resources and tips.

JunkBusters Junk Email Headlines contains tips and links to resources.

So, what do you think?

If you find this review helpful, please pass the word to your friends. Also email me with any comments or suggestions.

Remar Sutton

A note about third-party links – By selecting links on this page, you will leave DCU's web site and enter a web site hosted by an organization separate from DCU. We encourage you to read and evaluate the privacy policy of any site you visit when you enter the site. While we strive to only link you to companies and organizations that we feel offer useful information, DCU does not directly support nor guarantee claims made by these sites.

To beginning of page

updated July 2004

Digital Federal Credit Union
220 Donald Lynch Boulevard
PO Box 9130
Marlborough, MA 01752-9130
508.263.6700 • 800.328.8797

Your savings federally insured to at least $250,000 and backed by the full faith and credit of the United States Government. National Credit Union Administration, a U.S. Government Agency. Select for more information.