Author: Casey Markee
Efficiency and accuracy in communication may be more important today than at any time in human history. The number of spam messages passed between individuals and businesses continues to increase significantly each day, to the point that some are literally overwhelmed by their sheer volume. Now, more than ever, it is vital that true non-spam email messages be absolutely accurate and arrive at the correct location, on time.
According to most studies, Americans are doing their part in adding to the vast number of electronic messages, but they are also creating a huge number of unwanted, unnecessary messages. One set of statistics shows that as many as 4 of every 10 spam items come from U.S. addresses. Europeans are far worse, however. Half of all emails originating there are spam, according to some statistics.
But what is spam, really? Of course, most people know about the canned food made from pork products (a Hawaiian delicacy). The definition widely used in electronic messaging and email defines spam as a "disruptive, commercial message that is unsolicited and usually sent indiscriminately." The sheer number of unsolicited messages is enough of a problem in that the sheer handling of this additional traffic slows the entire process of communication. In addition, those messages contain symbols, code etc. that actually cause system disruption or total failure. The resulting damage can be costly.
Some of the top stories in the world of email and electronic messaging recently have focused on the motivation behind spamming. In the end, it is mostly greed/money that motivates these "spammers" who spend their time distributing spam full-time through automated bots and zombie computer networks. Many of those who watch this industry carefully acknowledge that current Federal laws in the United States and at the individual State level fall short of controlling this type of "white collar" crime.
So, what can be done to remedy this situation? Actually, a number of steps can be taken to ensure that individual and business email is safe and efficient. Just making sure the inbox is free of unwanted messages is an obvious place to start. But how is that done?
Much of the spam sent to worldwide email addresses is meant to introduce products, in the hopes that the receiver will be enticed to buy. Financial schemes (the dreaded Nigerian Email scam) and illicit pharmaceutical adverts make up a significant portion of spam; as does pornography and offers for adult material.
Basic e-mail filtering (determined by the content of the e-mail) is a simple step each and every user should be taking at the start of each day and at the start of each email session. In essence, this filtering can be initiated by certain words or phrases that automatically send messages to the trash. Beyond this initial effective step, there are black hole lists (DNS-based) of known spammers, as well as email addresses that are not intended to be used except to capture spam (spamtraps) which offer more intermediate ways to combat the problem at the computer user level.
Some of the best methods employed by individuals and businesses have not been enough to stop the most determined of spammers, however. The most aggressive will use false names and addresses to establish multiple accounts across multiple ISP's. The use of "buffers" or third-party senders, helps to isolate the actual spammer from recrimination. Spammers have found and will continue to find open paths to unsuspecting inboxes, with the added risk of virus-infected messages a growing concern.
Spam and viruses are a particular risk to companies with extensive communications networks. While many of the simple steps noted above will help keep a system clean (with constant attention by administrators), more aggressive tactics are needed to ensure the continued success of larger, commercial internal communications networks.
New technology, such as highly intuitive anti-spam filtering software, may be the answer to many of the problems caused by a worldwide increase in spam. Current email users can download these anti-spam software updates in real-time and in doing so will help keep their network current. This type of technology is at the top of the list for users looking for email maintenance and for help in maintaining the efficiency and integrity of an entire communications system. Among the key focus areas for general email users are virus-free stability, lower maintenance and upgrade costs, email search capabilities for customized spam surveillance, archive services and anti-spam tools that put the daily maintenance in the hands of the local administrator.
Spam continues to grow, as senders find motivation to increase their efforts. At one time only a few hundred people received these unwanted messages. But over the years, the problem has exploded and now affects billions of email users and businesses each day. By one estimate, only about 15% of email is truly wanted and needed by the end receiver. Companies have come to realize this inefficiency cannot be supported over the long-term and are turning more and more to professional software protection options for help.
Don't let spam win, make sure your email messaging system is protected by a robust anti-spam software solution and take back your inbox today!
Thursday, September 20, 2007
Wednesday, March 14, 2007
Should I Use A Free Spam Blocker?
By Rob Dee
With over 70 billion spams floating around the internet every day, and Symantec reporting that spam continues to be on the rise, it is now more important than ever to guard your email address against spam. The most effective method is he use of a spam blocker, a program designed specifically to filter spam out before it reaches your inbox.
Spam Blockers will usually work with a combination of blacklists, whitelists and bayesian(pronounced Bayes- i - an) filters. The Black List automatically classifies anything from a given email address(or domain) as Spam. The Whitelist automatically classifies anything from a given email address as NOT SPAM. The Bayesian Filter looks at everything left over after the blacklists and the whitelists have been applied and sorts it, based on what you historically label spam. This sort of technology is extremely efficient at filtering spam.
Spam Blockers, like most everything else on the Internet come in both paid and free versions, and the quality ranges from excellent to...well, let's just say I am aware of at least two free spam blockers which actually add to the problem. Spammers can be quite determined in thier efforts to get spam through. It is a common spammer tactic to put up a website with a 'remove from spam' list, which people innocently sign up thier email address to. They have of course just signed up to the spammers list and will be bombarded with spam. A more recent tactic goes a step further, offering free anti-spam software. In one case this software was merely ineffective and let all the spammers spam through, in another it actually infected the target machine with a program that let spam through, and used the targets machine as a zombie for sending spam from.
When dealing with the internet, due diligence is essential. If you want to use a free spam blocker, be sure that you do your research on it first. Just type it's name into google and see what people are saying. You should do this with paid spam blockers too, though they are less likely to be infected, the thought of paying someone to infect my computer disgusts me.
The one anti-spam product I have had a lot of success with, and would happily endorse, is the the one I advertise on my website - SpamWasher.
With an estimated 70-90 billion spam messages sent every day, the problem is not going away. Don't wait for someone to solve the problem for you, visit STOPSPAMNOW.info and download your free ebook on how to win the fight against spam.
Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Rob_Dee
With over 70 billion spams floating around the internet every day, and Symantec reporting that spam continues to be on the rise, it is now more important than ever to guard your email address against spam. The most effective method is he use of a spam blocker, a program designed specifically to filter spam out before it reaches your inbox.
Spam Blockers will usually work with a combination of blacklists, whitelists and bayesian(pronounced Bayes- i - an) filters. The Black List automatically classifies anything from a given email address(or domain) as Spam. The Whitelist automatically classifies anything from a given email address as NOT SPAM. The Bayesian Filter looks at everything left over after the blacklists and the whitelists have been applied and sorts it, based on what you historically label spam. This sort of technology is extremely efficient at filtering spam.
Spam Blockers, like most everything else on the Internet come in both paid and free versions, and the quality ranges from excellent to...well, let's just say I am aware of at least two free spam blockers which actually add to the problem. Spammers can be quite determined in thier efforts to get spam through. It is a common spammer tactic to put up a website with a 'remove from spam' list, which people innocently sign up thier email address to. They have of course just signed up to the spammers list and will be bombarded with spam. A more recent tactic goes a step further, offering free anti-spam software. In one case this software was merely ineffective and let all the spammers spam through, in another it actually infected the target machine with a program that let spam through, and used the targets machine as a zombie for sending spam from.
When dealing with the internet, due diligence is essential. If you want to use a free spam blocker, be sure that you do your research on it first. Just type it's name into google and see what people are saying. You should do this with paid spam blockers too, though they are less likely to be infected, the thought of paying someone to infect my computer disgusts me.
The one anti-spam product I have had a lot of success with, and would happily endorse, is the the one I advertise on my website - SpamWasher.
With an estimated 70-90 billion spam messages sent every day, the problem is not going away. Don't wait for someone to solve the problem for you, visit STOPSPAMNOW.info and download your free ebook on how to win the fight against spam.
Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Rob_Dee
Wednesday, February 28, 2007
Next On The Menu: Phish and Spam Over Voice
By F. Aldo
Last January 04, we submitted an article entitled "The Top Seven Threats To Your Computer in 2007" and we listed Voice over IP (VoIP) as the number four threat. Two weeks later, the Computerworld website came out with an article entitled "VoIP Soon To Be A Target Of...Hackers". For those of you who are unfamiliar with Computerworld, it is a website targeted more towards advanced computer users ("geeks" is the industry-standard appellation).
VoIP is not an entirely new technology, in fact it has been around since the mid-1990's. At that time, home internet users mostly connected through dial-up and the maximum speed was 56Kbps. High speed connections were limited mostly to big businesses who paid, what by today's standards are, ridiculously high fees for dedicated connections. High speed connection was a prerequisite for good quality connections, otherwise the connections would be choppy when done through dial-up.
Nowadays, with broadband internet affordable for households and businesses around the world, VoIP has become a common internet staple. Internet providers and telecommunications companies are falling over each other offering competitive pricing for VoIP. Basically, the use of VoIP has become widespread enough that spammers and cyber criminals want in on the action.
The weaknesses of VoIP is in its very infrastructure and the protocol it uses in order to transport the voice data. It comes as no surprise that hackers are savvy enough to exploit these. Without getting into technical details, VoIP's weakness figure prominently in its inability to adapt with some older and existing firewalls. For those of you who are not familiar with firewalls, they can either be hardware or software applications that secure your personal computers and/or your networks from unwanted traffic.
Needless to say, without a straightforward way to secure your voice data, they can easily be exposed to any form of intrusion. The Computerworld article mentions that it is extremely easy to listen in on a call. And on the other end, it is also not at all difficult to inject noise or spam into a conversation. This practice of injecting spam is already being practiced enough to earn it the term "spit".
This practice of "spit" has attracted not just the spammers' attention, but the scammers as well. The same article identifies hackers using a particular phishing exploit to imitate the interactive voice response system of actual companies. Imagine yourself using VoIP to call your bank's automated voice response system to carry out some transactions but in reality, you are interacting with a scammer's system. Can you say identity theft fast enough?
Security appliances and applications on the providers' level is available, but implementing them correctly is the challenge that they face. There are many corporations these days who forbid their personnel from conducting sensitive conversations via VoIP, Hewlett-Packard for one. As a home user, you can take a cue from this type of corporate policy. Most banks and other financial institutions provide toll free numbers, so it is still safer to use the old conventional way of picking up the phone and doing your phone transactions this way.
There is nothing more convenient and fun to talk to relatives and friends in faraway places over the computer, but it is another thing to have your finances wiped clean by cyber criminals. And the threat is certainly real.
--
The author is an information technology practitioner and part-time webmaster. For easy to understand guides and tips on protecting your computers, visit Protect Your Computers From Viruses and Worms.
Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=F._Aldo
Last January 04, we submitted an article entitled "The Top Seven Threats To Your Computer in 2007" and we listed Voice over IP (VoIP) as the number four threat. Two weeks later, the Computerworld website came out with an article entitled "VoIP Soon To Be A Target Of...Hackers". For those of you who are unfamiliar with Computerworld, it is a website targeted more towards advanced computer users ("geeks" is the industry-standard appellation).
VoIP is not an entirely new technology, in fact it has been around since the mid-1990's. At that time, home internet users mostly connected through dial-up and the maximum speed was 56Kbps. High speed connections were limited mostly to big businesses who paid, what by today's standards are, ridiculously high fees for dedicated connections. High speed connection was a prerequisite for good quality connections, otherwise the connections would be choppy when done through dial-up.
Nowadays, with broadband internet affordable for households and businesses around the world, VoIP has become a common internet staple. Internet providers and telecommunications companies are falling over each other offering competitive pricing for VoIP. Basically, the use of VoIP has become widespread enough that spammers and cyber criminals want in on the action.
The weaknesses of VoIP is in its very infrastructure and the protocol it uses in order to transport the voice data. It comes as no surprise that hackers are savvy enough to exploit these. Without getting into technical details, VoIP's weakness figure prominently in its inability to adapt with some older and existing firewalls. For those of you who are not familiar with firewalls, they can either be hardware or software applications that secure your personal computers and/or your networks from unwanted traffic.
Needless to say, without a straightforward way to secure your voice data, they can easily be exposed to any form of intrusion. The Computerworld article mentions that it is extremely easy to listen in on a call. And on the other end, it is also not at all difficult to inject noise or spam into a conversation. This practice of injecting spam is already being practiced enough to earn it the term "spit".
This practice of "spit" has attracted not just the spammers' attention, but the scammers as well. The same article identifies hackers using a particular phishing exploit to imitate the interactive voice response system of actual companies. Imagine yourself using VoIP to call your bank's automated voice response system to carry out some transactions but in reality, you are interacting with a scammer's system. Can you say identity theft fast enough?
Security appliances and applications on the providers' level is available, but implementing them correctly is the challenge that they face. There are many corporations these days who forbid their personnel from conducting sensitive conversations via VoIP, Hewlett-Packard for one. As a home user, you can take a cue from this type of corporate policy. Most banks and other financial institutions provide toll free numbers, so it is still safer to use the old conventional way of picking up the phone and doing your phone transactions this way.
There is nothing more convenient and fun to talk to relatives and friends in faraway places over the computer, but it is another thing to have your finances wiped clean by cyber criminals. And the threat is certainly real.
--
The author is an information technology practitioner and part-time webmaster. For easy to understand guides and tips on protecting your computers, visit Protect Your Computers From Viruses and Worms.
Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=F._Aldo
Saturday, February 24, 2007
How Safe Are Mac Users From Spyware?
By Terry Malewicki
Currently, it is true to say that any Spyware program targeted at Mac computers would spread at a rather slow speed for one simple reason. And that is the fact that only about 3 per cent of the computers linked to the World Wide Web today are macs using Mac OS or Mac operating system.
What this means is that every time the virus attempts to spread, it will find that 97 per cent of the time they will be facing a PC or non-mac computer.
Unfortunately the result of this has been to give many Mac users a false sense of security that is laving an increasing number of them very vulnerable. The reality is that there are numerous Spyware and Adware malicious software in the market today that are capable of attacking and infecting Mac users.
There has even been talk for sometime now that it is only a matter of time before a hybrid software capable of infecting both Microsoft Windows and Mac OS hits the web. This kind of software ld spread very rapidly and wreck havoc amongst Mac users most of whom are vulnerable to such an attack due to the inadequate protection that most have.
Yet there is really no excuse and every Mac user should take the threat very seriously indeed and take a serious look at Adware and Spyware removal programs available for the Mac. The need for free mac spyware removal programs that are available online is rapidly growing and there is no reason why every Mac user should not take advantage of them and thus protect themselves from a real danger and threat that is capable of causing havoc and serious damage.
Read more on spyware dangers you must avoid for your Mac.
Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Terry_Malewicki
Currently, it is true to say that any Spyware program targeted at Mac computers would spread at a rather slow speed for one simple reason. And that is the fact that only about 3 per cent of the computers linked to the World Wide Web today are macs using Mac OS or Mac operating system.
What this means is that every time the virus attempts to spread, it will find that 97 per cent of the time they will be facing a PC or non-mac computer.
Unfortunately the result of this has been to give many Mac users a false sense of security that is laving an increasing number of them very vulnerable. The reality is that there are numerous Spyware and Adware malicious software in the market today that are capable of attacking and infecting Mac users.
There has even been talk for sometime now that it is only a matter of time before a hybrid software capable of infecting both Microsoft Windows and Mac OS hits the web. This kind of software ld spread very rapidly and wreck havoc amongst Mac users most of whom are vulnerable to such an attack due to the inadequate protection that most have.
Yet there is really no excuse and every Mac user should take the threat very seriously indeed and take a serious look at Adware and Spyware removal programs available for the Mac. The need for free mac spyware removal programs that are available online is rapidly growing and there is no reason why every Mac user should not take advantage of them and thus protect themselves from a real danger and threat that is capable of causing havoc and serious damage.
Read more on spyware dangers you must avoid for your Mac.
Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Terry_Malewicki
Thursday, January 18, 2007
Types of Spam Filters
By Eddie Tobey
A spam filter is a web-based program which helps to prevent spam e-mail from entering your inbox. Password filter, blacklist and, whitelist filters, challenge/response filter, rules-based filter, community-based filter, and adaptive/Bayesian filter are among the common types of spam filters used nowadays.
Password filters are the basic form of filtering commonly used. These block e-mails without password in the subject line. E-mails containing a pre-set password in the subject line alone are accepted. But, this filter might sometimes block desirable messages also.
Blacklist is another filtering solution which blocks e-mail messages from banned senders. Whitelist filters accept messages only from approved senders. Challenge/response filters such as MailFrontier and Matador will not accept an unapproved sender's e-mail messages until response to challenge arrives. As this filter has some serious drawbacks, it is not considered a perfect solution for spam.
Rules based filter is another popular type of spam filter which blocks mail depending on a pre-determined set of rules. These have a tendency to reject numerous legitimate e-mails. Sophisticated rules based filter solutions such as Spamassassin are more effective. These help to catch 90-95% of spam by finding exclamation points, specific words and phrases, malformed header, and odd punctuations.
A community-based filter, SpamNet is another effective tool, which blocks mail based on community agreement that it is junk. When a user receives a spam message, the message is mailed to the central server, where a fingerprint of the information is stored. The filter blocks the message from user's inboxes, when a number of people have voted the message as spam.
Adaptive / Bayesian filter is among the most popular and new type of filters available now. These utilize a mathematical formula to examine the content of a message. This filter learns user's preferences and accepts only the messages, which are desirable.
Spam Filters provides detailed information on Spam Filters, Email Spam Filters, Free Spam Filters, Best Spam Filters and more. Spam Filters is affiliated with Spam Blockers.
A spam filter is a web-based program which helps to prevent spam e-mail from entering your inbox. Password filter, blacklist and, whitelist filters, challenge/response filter, rules-based filter, community-based filter, and adaptive/Bayesian filter are among the common types of spam filters used nowadays.
Password filters are the basic form of filtering commonly used. These block e-mails without password in the subject line. E-mails containing a pre-set password in the subject line alone are accepted. But, this filter might sometimes block desirable messages also.
Blacklist is another filtering solution which blocks e-mail messages from banned senders. Whitelist filters accept messages only from approved senders. Challenge/response filters such as MailFrontier and Matador will not accept an unapproved sender's e-mail messages until response to challenge arrives. As this filter has some serious drawbacks, it is not considered a perfect solution for spam.
Rules based filter is another popular type of spam filter which blocks mail depending on a pre-determined set of rules. These have a tendency to reject numerous legitimate e-mails. Sophisticated rules based filter solutions such as Spamassassin are more effective. These help to catch 90-95% of spam by finding exclamation points, specific words and phrases, malformed header, and odd punctuations.
A community-based filter, SpamNet is another effective tool, which blocks mail based on community agreement that it is junk. When a user receives a spam message, the message is mailed to the central server, where a fingerprint of the information is stored. The filter blocks the message from user's inboxes, when a number of people have voted the message as spam.
Adaptive / Bayesian filter is among the most popular and new type of filters available now. These utilize a mathematical formula to examine the content of a message. This filter learns user's preferences and accepts only the messages, which are desirable.
Spam Filters provides detailed information on Spam Filters, Email Spam Filters, Free Spam Filters, Best Spam Filters and more. Spam Filters is affiliated with Spam Blockers.
Tuesday, January 9, 2007
Service Offered By Spam Blockers
By Low Jeremy
Wanting to use the Internet more than other people is not a sign of selfishness. It just shows how much you value the Internet, and also that you are more technologically inclined compared to other people. You love the Internet for all its wonders. The way you can surf to death, the way you can chat with other people from all over the globe, the way you can download your favorite media, and the list goes on and on. Is there anything about the Internet that you hate?
Yes, there is! You have forgotten about the fact that the Internet is filled with spammers. Spammers are those companies or individuals who have nothing left to do in the cyberworld but to make other people's lives miserable. They send junk mail to other people. And, in case you do not know yet, junk mail is a longer version for the term "spam".
Spam can sometimes get to your nerves. If only spam was a person, you would probably want, if not actually do, to strangle spam. But no, spam is not human, nor can it be touched. You have to fight spam by other means.
You can fight spam by using the SCBL, which is a shorter version, more like an acronym, of SpamCop Blocking List. By its name, "SpamCop", it must mean that it guards and protects, the usual things cops do, you from spam. It is powerful in fighting spam. If you use SpamCop to your advantage, you will, indeed, be successful in eliminating spam.
However, the SCBL has disadvantages. It is not a perfect innovation and therefore has its own defects. There is a big risk that as you block email from various spammers using the SCBL, the messages from those whom you want to get email from can also be blocked. It does not have a mind on its own, thus, it can't identify which messages are wanted and which are hated.
The SCBL is a blocking list of various IP addresses that have been reported to be sending spam to those who have installed SpamCop. It acts quickly due to the fact that it also enlists the websites that send reported mails like automated reports, SpamCop user submissions, and report sources.
You need not worry about having to use some of your time in delisting websites because the SCBL automatically does this for you. It automatically delists the aforementioned kind of mails.
After having read this article, you now have an idea concerning spam blocking. It is as easy as pie. You can avail of the service spam blockers offer you if you just take time in searching the right spam blocker that you think is appropriate for your system.
Low Jeremy maintains http://spam-blocking.articlesforreprint.com This content is provided by Low Jeremy. It may be used only in its entirety with all links included.
Wanting to use the Internet more than other people is not a sign of selfishness. It just shows how much you value the Internet, and also that you are more technologically inclined compared to other people. You love the Internet for all its wonders. The way you can surf to death, the way you can chat with other people from all over the globe, the way you can download your favorite media, and the list goes on and on. Is there anything about the Internet that you hate?
Yes, there is! You have forgotten about the fact that the Internet is filled with spammers. Spammers are those companies or individuals who have nothing left to do in the cyberworld but to make other people's lives miserable. They send junk mail to other people. And, in case you do not know yet, junk mail is a longer version for the term "spam".
Spam can sometimes get to your nerves. If only spam was a person, you would probably want, if not actually do, to strangle spam. But no, spam is not human, nor can it be touched. You have to fight spam by other means.
You can fight spam by using the SCBL, which is a shorter version, more like an acronym, of SpamCop Blocking List. By its name, "SpamCop", it must mean that it guards and protects, the usual things cops do, you from spam. It is powerful in fighting spam. If you use SpamCop to your advantage, you will, indeed, be successful in eliminating spam.
However, the SCBL has disadvantages. It is not a perfect innovation and therefore has its own defects. There is a big risk that as you block email from various spammers using the SCBL, the messages from those whom you want to get email from can also be blocked. It does not have a mind on its own, thus, it can't identify which messages are wanted and which are hated.
The SCBL is a blocking list of various IP addresses that have been reported to be sending spam to those who have installed SpamCop. It acts quickly due to the fact that it also enlists the websites that send reported mails like automated reports, SpamCop user submissions, and report sources.
You need not worry about having to use some of your time in delisting websites because the SCBL automatically does this for you. It automatically delists the aforementioned kind of mails.
After having read this article, you now have an idea concerning spam blocking. It is as easy as pie. You can avail of the service spam blockers offer you if you just take time in searching the right spam blocker that you think is appropriate for your system.
Low Jeremy maintains http://spam-blocking.articlesforreprint.com This content is provided by Low Jeremy. It may be used only in its entirety with all links included.
Saturday, January 6, 2007
How to Run a Spam Free Internet Business
By Maurice Clarke
Once you launch an internet based business your spam troubles really start.
Why is the web based entrepreneur more at risk from spammers? Let's look at the problems a typically web business faces to ensure the wrath of the spamming community;
Amateurs and Beginners
A large number of new businesses on the web are newbies, folk who think there is an instant fortune to be made on the web. True there are many internet millionaires and a large number of people and firms earning a good living serving the international web community. However by far the majority fail to survive the first few years, put off to a large degree by lack of progress but more vitally the volume of spam email which their business attracts.
The seasoned web entrepreneur may well "know it all", or least most of it, but spam email is created by clever and innovative lawbreakers who thrive on the challenge and opportunities spam email creates.
Domain names
To run a successful business venture you need a domain name, perhaps even several if you want to protect an existing business name, or cover all the .com, .net, .info options. Despite the millions of existing domains it is still possible to register something memorable, and naturally totally unique.
Having a domain name means having an email address which you own and control. Your own domain email has several advantages over private or free email addresses used by normal web surfers, and this is where the problem starts.
Most web hosters of typical domains allow unlimited prefixes to a domain. Usually a business may actually have only a few they need to use sales, support, webmaster, inquiries, and a few names of key people using the format " firstname.lastname@yourdomain.com " or " firstname@yourdomain.com " being the most common options.
Spammers often send email to made up prefixes to domains which as such offer huge spam opportunities. Simple solution here is to re-direct all the key prefixes and send all OTHER prefixed email to a BLACK HOLE or delete on receipt. The final choice varies with the web hosting service options.
Use web based forms
Exposed email addresses on web pages are at risk and an open invitation to spammers. Hide email addresses from ALL web pages and use forms to submit enquiries, sales, or feedback.
A common spammer trick is to trawl web sites and "harvest" email addresses, this includes email for you, customers, members and clients. Your web site may be helping spammers get to people you deal with as well as you, and if you as a source can be identified it may not help your reputation.
Password protected areas will stop harvesting as a login is required as a condition of reaching areas of the web site where personal information is available. Most sites of this type offer FREE registration collecting name, password and email, then verify the email to ensure 100% opt in by real users.
Automated spamming methods are pretty useless at filling in forms and answering emails so simple form processes are a sure fire spam killer.
Use a professional email client
Many web businesses are still using free email accounts, or Outlook Express the free email client with the majority of ISP accounts.
Business web email is best managed by POP3 accounts direct off your computer or network.
The extra features and the robust nature of professional email clients are well worth their modest investment
Extra benefits include;
more control over folders
auto archiving and deletion of old mail
diaries, reminders and schedulers
spam and phishing control features
rules to sort and move incoming email
wider information on contacts
backup and restore of all folders and email
more professional look and feel.
Most popular are Microsoft OUTLOOK (the upgrade for Express), EUDORA and THUNDERBIRD but there are countless others. Searching for "email clients" will find the leaders.
Email redirecting
Any business email is potentially spam, so with that in mind it is recommended you operate with just a handful of real useable prefixes, which then allows you to sort incoming email based on certain characteristics using the RULES feature of your email client.
FROM known and trust sources or unique email addresses allocated to specific subjects - orders, feedback etc.
SUBJECT by using forms or hidden email addressed messages from a particular page will ALL have the same subject < email@yourdomain.com?subject="your subject" > TO a specific email address you have designated
A RULE may apply to any one of the above conditions or any two or all three being met. Common ACTION is to either
MOVE the email to a special folder (/newsales)
DELETE the email
It is far better to do spam checks BEFORE the email reaches your EMail client which is best suited to carry out final and fine tuning checks on your email. Most ISPs have some form of spam control (free with the account or as a low cost option) and this may be useful in stopping the more obvious email.
Low cost, off site spam detection services are recommended to identify more cleverly crafted spam items. These subscription based services process spam from hundreds of thousands of subscribers and can more easily identify scams and more subtle spam attacks. " Creative spam " accounts by far the largest proportion of spam email as spammers become more novel and creative with their email collection and sending methods.
Keep vital email separate
Maintain special emails for only known and trusted contacts which can come direct to you.
Maintain special email addresses to give out ONLY to 100% trusted contacts
Treat all mail as spam unless you 100% trust the source - 99% is doubt and doubt is SPAM.
Maintain your email contacts address book and avoid adding replied to contacts to the book automatically.
Regularly check any approved senders list (sometimes called a white list) to ensure it's accuracy and freshness.
Web Audience - quality v quantity
Once you launch a new business you want audience, prospects to come to your site and join, buy or whatever action you want from members, customers or clients.
You may be after a small select market or the world at large. The bigger your potential market the greater the audience and thus spammers will be attracted to you more than smaller sites.
How you market your site and get it known creates areas where you get known to spammers as well as your target audience.
When promoting to directories and free posting sites assess their value to you, as often many of these sell on emails used by webmasters posting information to spammers, or indeed spamming communities. The easiest route is to use unique and special email addresses for posting which can be identified in special sorted folders. Many posting services require a manual approval or authentication so deleting all mail from such sources, although may be desirable to avoid spamming, may loose some potential promotion sources.
Conclusion
Prevention if better than cure, so be careful where you place or submit your email addresses
Use as few email addresses as possible, it may look neat for small fledgling businesses to appear to have loads of different staff or departments and divisions but each one is a potential spammers paradise.
Redirect incoming email to specific external services and PC based folders helps identify sources of spam, so you can change some email addresses or redirect to different sources.
100% spam eradication may be a long way off still, but simple low cost spam control measures are an essential part of a successful web business, especially for the over confident, under funded web novice.
Maurice Clarke is founding owner of Spam Solution http://www.spam-solution.net dedicated to expand its fight against spammers. Offering a wide range of guides on email control and spam issues have led us to become a major force in the fight against spam. If you found this article useful please tell a friend about it and us.
Tuesday, January 2, 2007
Spam Wars: Fighting Email Spam With Spam Filters
By Rick Vidallon
Have you ever wondered how those odd-ball emails make their way into your inbox? Some contain absurd titles like: There was so much sugar in that dessert that it made my eyes hurt! Hippolytus as old records have said. Never been better since I laughed the bank. Welcome to Spam Wars. There are never ending battles being waged for your inbox. It is the spammers' quest, duty and job to get you to click or open their email. But how in the heck does it get past your spam protection?
Confirmation Required This is the highest level of protection where an action or reply is required by the sender. While this is an effective way to block unwanted emails, you may end up blocking important automated emails from important sources like your bank or credit card companies.
Reporting Malicious Spammers Two very common types of malicious emails are virus attachments and spam that seeks to steal your financial information. Virus attachments cannot infect your computer unless you click or open the attachment. There are many virus protection software programs that warn you once a virus attachment has been received. Some popular programs include: Norton, McAffee and Avast.
Spammers seeking to steal your personal information or gain access to your financial information go to great lengths to trick unwary users by creating emails that look exactly like an official email from a reputable financial or online company.
Detecting Financial Fraud If you see an email that looks suspicious there are ways to detect it. Let’s say you receive an email from Bank of America. The email warns you that someone has attempted to access your account and your cooperation is needed to prevent this from happening. The email looks very official and contains their logo along with a properly formatted hyperlink that looks something like this: bankofamerica.com/account_resolutions. But once you click this, there is a very different link, which still looks official. The page still looks like Bank of American but the web address is linking to another website aka: clickster.com/bankofamerica.com When you see these emails forward them to the proper departments of the actual company or organization. Here are two emails for reporting suspicious emails to Pay Pal and Bank of America. Forward suspicious emails to abuse@bankofmaerican.com and spoof@paypal.com Spammers' Weapon Of Choice The spammers' weapon of choice is surprise. Heck, even I've been fooled once or twice out of sheer curiosity. The email might come to me titled as ‘Dear Rick’, Or ‘Rick, please read this’. Spammers or mass email marketers need to sneak past your spam filters, which are either setup by your Internet Service Provider (ISP) or your own email client spam filters.
Internet Service Providers can only do so much. It’s up to you if want more protection. There are third party providers that specialize in identifying and blocking spam.
How Spam Is Identified Here are the primary parameters that define an email:
From Address: legal_billpay@biz.com! From Domain: billpayers.net Subject: We pay all your late bill fees today. Body Text: You have been approved! Attachments:
Specific file Names: paynow Specific File Extensions: paynow.exe
Most ISPs have a ongoing file of known addresses and domains belonging to spammers. However, identifying spam using the subject line and body text is more difficult and must be blocked at the user level.
Blocking Spam Based On Use Since I run a business I do not want to unwittingly block new emails from potential business inquiries. So I have to deal with a moderate amount of spam. Some users work around the problem by creating multiple emails for friends, family, business and general use. If you have some techy skills you may define your own spam filters within specific email domain accounts. You may view or download my own set of filters for free at the link below.
‘Spam-Filtering-Rules’
As you receive new spam you may add them to this list to decrease your spam influx.
Rick Vidallon is President of Visionefx, a Web design company based in Virginia Beach, Va. They provide services to national companies as well as small to medium businesses throughout the United States. Rick can be reached at (757) 619-6456 or rick@visionefx.net. Visit us on the web at http://www.visionefx.net
Have you ever wondered how those odd-ball emails make their way into your inbox? Some contain absurd titles like: There was so much sugar in that dessert that it made my eyes hurt! Hippolytus as old records have said. Never been better since I laughed the bank. Welcome to Spam Wars. There are never ending battles being waged for your inbox. It is the spammers' quest, duty and job to get you to click or open their email. But how in the heck does it get past your spam protection?
Confirmation Required This is the highest level of protection where an action or reply is required by the sender. While this is an effective way to block unwanted emails, you may end up blocking important automated emails from important sources like your bank or credit card companies.
Reporting Malicious Spammers Two very common types of malicious emails are virus attachments and spam that seeks to steal your financial information. Virus attachments cannot infect your computer unless you click or open the attachment. There are many virus protection software programs that warn you once a virus attachment has been received. Some popular programs include: Norton, McAffee and Avast.
Spammers seeking to steal your personal information or gain access to your financial information go to great lengths to trick unwary users by creating emails that look exactly like an official email from a reputable financial or online company.
Detecting Financial Fraud If you see an email that looks suspicious there are ways to detect it. Let’s say you receive an email from Bank of America. The email warns you that someone has attempted to access your account and your cooperation is needed to prevent this from happening. The email looks very official and contains their logo along with a properly formatted hyperlink that looks something like this: bankofamerica.com/account_resolutions. But once you click this, there is a very different link, which still looks official. The page still looks like Bank of American but the web address is linking to another website aka: clickster.com/bankofamerica.com When you see these emails forward them to the proper departments of the actual company or organization. Here are two emails for reporting suspicious emails to Pay Pal and Bank of America. Forward suspicious emails to abuse@bankofmaerican.com and spoof@paypal.com Spammers' Weapon Of Choice The spammers' weapon of choice is surprise. Heck, even I've been fooled once or twice out of sheer curiosity. The email might come to me titled as ‘Dear Rick’, Or ‘Rick, please read this’. Spammers or mass email marketers need to sneak past your spam filters, which are either setup by your Internet Service Provider (ISP) or your own email client spam filters.
Internet Service Providers can only do so much. It’s up to you if want more protection. There are third party providers that specialize in identifying and blocking spam.
How Spam Is Identified Here are the primary parameters that define an email:
From Address: legal_billpay@biz.com! From Domain: billpayers.net Subject: We pay all your late bill fees today. Body Text: You have been approved! Attachments:
Specific file Names: paynow Specific File Extensions: paynow.exe
Most ISPs have a ongoing file of known addresses and domains belonging to spammers. However, identifying spam using the subject line and body text is more difficult and must be blocked at the user level.
Blocking Spam Based On Use Since I run a business I do not want to unwittingly block new emails from potential business inquiries. So I have to deal with a moderate amount of spam. Some users work around the problem by creating multiple emails for friends, family, business and general use. If you have some techy skills you may define your own spam filters within specific email domain accounts. You may view or download my own set of filters for free at the link below.
‘Spam-Filtering-Rules’
As you receive new spam you may add them to this list to decrease your spam influx.
Rick Vidallon is President of Visionefx, a Web design company based in Virginia Beach, Va. They provide services to national companies as well as small to medium businesses throughout the United States. Rick can be reached at (757) 619-6456 or rick@visionefx.net. Visit us on the web at http://www.visionefx.net
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