jlmorone000.00.00.00.012009-04-25T17:36:51+00:00false<h2>Ways to Eliminate Spam from Your Inbox</h2>
<p>It turns out that Spam is not only annoying but actually has a heavy impact on the environment. Eliminating Spam from your inbox can help. Check out ITS 's security features and their</p>
<h3>1. Use Spam Filters.</h3>
<p>When email was originally designed in <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/SMTP" target="_blank">SMTP</a> (Simple Mail Transfer Protocol) there was no reason to authenticate email message senders because email was originally only for trusted users such university researchers. So to make the process simpler, emails were designed to be able to "hop" from one machine to another, on to its destination. On the public Internet, this is a serious flaw, allowing spammers to <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/E-mail_spoofing" target="_blank">spoof</a> the origin of a message.<br /> <br /> Initially, <a href="http://www.networksecurityjournal.com/whitepaper/using-MX-and-spam-firewalls/" target="_blank">spam filters</a> were created that used a dictionary method to filter spam if certain words were present (e.g. "Viagra" or "Sex"). It was not until years later, that <a href="http://www.itsecurity.com/vendors/vendor-profile-ironport/">IronPort</a> (recently acquired by Cisco) devised a more robust, effective spam filtering method using a two-layer defense model, now used in over 20 percent of email servers.</p>
<h3>2. Eliminate Viruses.</h3>
<p>Spam still slips through filters, and sometimes delivers viruses that then turns your computer into a spamming machine without you even knowing. In fact, <a href="http://www.itsecurity.com/whitepaper/pdf/five-essential-steps-to-safer-email-ironport.pdf">90 percent [PDF]</a> of computer viruses deposit an SMTP engine which then sends out spam, unbeknownst to the computer owner. Some of these viruses go yet further, and <a href="http://www.itsecurity.com/features/email-security-for-dummies/">search your PC for private information</a> and steal company or personal bank account information by <a href="http://www.itsecurity.com/whitepaper/pdf/Email-Security-Buyers-Guide.pdf">emailing</a> it back to the spammer. This could result in lawsuits and/or fines due to email non-<a href="http://www.itsecurity.com/features/feature-email-security-non-technical-101606/">compliance</a> with government regulations to protect certain data.</p>
<h3>3. Keep Your Email Account Safe.</h3>
<p>Email users can do their part to reduce spam. When you sign up for something online, read the details carefully and <a href="http://email.about.com/cs/spamfightingtips/qt/et022102.htm" target="_blank">uncheck checkboxes</a> for additional offers. Otherwise, you'll receive email from partners of the site you signed up at.<br /> <br /> <strong>Use Freebie Accounts</strong><br /> Using freebie email accounts is one of the <a href="http://email.about.com/cs/spamfightingtips/qt/et081102.htm" target="_blank">simplest ways</a> to fight spam. Set up a few freebie accounts and redirect them to your main account. Then use those freebie accounts whenever you need to signup for something online. If an account gets spammed, disable or delete it. <a href="http://email.about.com/cs/spamfightingtips/qt/et021101.htm" target="_blank">Never use your primary email address</a> to sign up for anything.<br /> <br /> If the prospect of setting up tons of freebie accounts seems like too much work, you should at the very least <a href="http://www.articlecodex.com/Articles/Computers/Eight-Quick-Tips-For-Stopping-SPAM-11253.htm" target="_blank">use three email accounts</a>: one for business, one for personal stuff, and another for online shopping.</p>
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<h3>4. Test Who Is Spamming You.</h3>
<p>When you sign up for something online, sites usually say they won't sell your info. Unfortunately, some do, or their employees do. But if you've followed a few simple methods, you can often determine who's spamming you.<br /> <br /></p>
<ol>
<li><strong>Use dummy accounts</strong>.<br /> Use one account (freebie or your own) for each signup, and use a suitable address name so you know where you signed up with that email address.<br /> <br /> </li>
<li><strong>Use augmented addresses</strong>.<br /> Some freebie email hosts support augmented addresses, including Google Mail. For example, if your email is me@gmail.com, then sign up at, say, wowweb20.com with me+wowweb20@gmail.com. GMail will strip out the extra characters for delivery. You can even write a GMail filter to automatically redirect emails from specific sources to their own "label" (folder) in order to distinguish what emails came from where. Unfortunately, not all signup scripts can handle augmented addresses.<br /> <br /> </li>
<li><strong>Use fake signup names</strong>.<br /> If you are using a single email address for all signups, use a different fake first or last name at each site, to help you remember where you signed up. If you are using GMail or something as effective, you can later redirect spam sources to the trash folder. That way you'll at least know who is giving away your information. </li>
</ol>
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<h3>5. Know What To Do When You See Spam In Your Inbox.</h3>
<p>Generally speaking, most of us can spot spam in our Inbox. What you do when you do spot spam can affect how much more follows it. Here is what to do if you spy spam in your Inbox: <br /> <br /></p>
<ol>
<li><strong>Don't open it</strong>.<br /> Especially don't open attachments that you are not expecting. <a href="http://www.itsecurity.com/whitepaper/whitepaper-email-trojan-protection/">Viruses</a> often spread by hijacking the email list of affected computers. So just because you recognize the sender doesn't mean the email, or its attachment, are legitimate.<br /> <br /> </li>
<li><strong>Don't open it, pt 2: I see you</strong>.<br /> Pixel tracking is a once legit method now used to verify and <a href="http://email.about.com/cs/spamfightingtips/qt/et032802.htm" target="_blank">track</a> active email accounts. It involves embedding an image from a Web server into messages. If your email reader supports HTML messages, then upon opening one with an image, your IP address is recorded on the sender's web server access logs. Since the image filename is possibly tailored for you, they'll also know your email account is active. Fortunately, some email clients automatically suppress images unless you turn them on for a given message. If you do want to take a look at a picture sent in a questionable email, try to view messages <a href="http://email.about.com/od/staysecureandprivate/a/webbug_privacy_2.htm" target="_blank">while you are offline</a>, or turn off the receipt of HTML messages.<br /> <br /> </li>
<li><strong>Buyer beware</strong>.<br /> <a href="http://www.articlecodex.com/Articles/Computers/Eight-Quick-Tips-For-Stopping-SPAM-11253.htm" target="_blank">Never buy</a> anything from link in a spam email. If you do, you can assume your details will be passed around to others.<br /> <br /> </li>
<li><strong>Return to sender: ignore false no-delivers</strong>.<br /> Beware of spam with a subject line suggesting your email was undeliverable. <a href="http://email.about.com/od/spamfightingtips/qt/et053104.htm" target="_blank">Ignore them</a>.<br /> <br /> </li>
<li><strong>Groupthink</strong>.<br /> Beware of spam implying you are subscribed to some newsgroup. You'll usually get 3-10 messages simultaneously with similar subject lines and content, but supposedly from different people... extremely sly.<br /> <br /> </li>
<li><strong>Paved with good (and bad) intentions</strong>.<br /> In addition to spam sent illegally, there are a surprising number of spam emails sent by legal and legitimate organizations. </li>
</ol>argam00false111122false1122servicehttp://www.itsecurity.com/features/email-inbox-security-011107/3false0Eliminate Spam and Unwanted Emails02010-01-11T18:20:00+00:0096742300