Dealing with spam

Dealing with spam

Spam is another word for unwanted and unsolicited email.

Email spam is usually one message that is sent to millions of individuals email addresses, often advertising something you dont need such as pornography, dodgy diet products or moneymaking schemes.

Use of the term "spam" was adopted as a result of the Monty Python sketch in which a group of Vikings sang a chorus of "spam, spam, spam . . . " that got louder and louder gradually drowning out other conversation. Hence, the analogy applied because unsolicited email drowns out normal conversation on the net.

Spammers compile lists of email addresses by scanning newsgroup postings, stealing internet mailing lists, searching the web or just second-guessing addresses. Some recent viruses have stolen the contents of users address books to use for spamming purposes.

Like everyone in the internet industry, Supanet wants to stop spam, but it's almost impossible to stop all spam. The great majority of messages comes from overseas, making it very hard for the British authorities to do anything directly to apprehend the spammers.

At Supanet, we have filters on our email system which stop a great deal of unwanted email but we also recommend that customers take on board the following tips to avoid spam:

1. Delete any spam you receive. Dont open it, especially if it comes with any kind of attachment. It might contain a virus that could severely damage your computer or a dialler that could leave you with a huge phone bill.

2. Be careful who you give your email address to when you are online. Check out companies privacy policies before you subscribe to anything. If you allow your email address to appear on any website (including your own), it may be harvested by one of thousands of bots that trawl the internet looking for them. Dont post your main email address on newsgroups or message boards and dont list your email address in any online directories.

3. There are various firewall programmes, anti-spamming software packages and other technical measures that can help keep your email address a secret from various unscrupulous web site owners, or others who harvest peoples contact details.

However, these products dont have a 100 per cent success rate and can block legitimate email. Also, a down side of filter products is that you still have to download all your mail (including spam); the filter just sends the spam straight to your trash. It doesn't solve the spam problem, but it does help keep it away from the mail you actually want to read.

4. Lots of people now have more than one email address: one that they keep relatively private or only give to friends and business associates, and another that they might use if they go surfing or want to sign on for various internet-based services. The latter address is where the spam will usually end up.

5. Do not respond to spam asking a spammer to remove you from their email list. This will just confirm that your email address is genuine and active and you could end up getting a lot more. We've also had reports of spam email asking you to confirm if you want to notify the sender that you are deleting the message. We recommend you don't notify the sender as again, it proves that your email address is valid.

6. If you receive spam promoting illegal activities, especially child pornography, then we encourage you to report the email to your local police station.

7. A common email scam is the '419' (advanced fee fraud) letter. It usually originates from Nigeria and the author claims to be a senior government or central bank official who has managed to over inflate a contract, generating a personal profit. In return for help smuggling money out of the country, the recipient is offered a percentage, usually around 20 per cent.

If you receive a 419 letter, hand the letter or email into your local police station, marked for the attention of the Fraud Squad. Emails should be printed out in full, including the header and complete sender details. Remember, if it sounds too good to be true, it probably is.

8. Another common fraud is an email claiming to be from a major online institution " for example, your bank, eBay or Paypal. Organisations such as these do not ask for personal or account details in an email. If you receive an email from your bank, ring them up to confirm the validity if youre in any doubt.

These steps may not stop all spam, but they will reduce the amount and the risks they pose.