Netco newsletter May/June 2006

Spam, Spam, Spam

Anyone listening to Monty Python's "Spam, Spam, Spam" thirty years ago couldn't have realised that the name for this processed meat would haunt them. It arrives in most e-mail in-boxes hourly. Spam is the bane of people who use e-mail to stay in touch.

Nuisance and scam e-mails are generally called Spam and fighting Spam is a tedious task but necessary to return e-mail to being a useful tool.

Protect Against

Spam Reducing Spam takes a mixture of common sense when using e-mail and preventative programs. Sensible use means following a few rules when sending and receiving e-mails.

Never reply to spam. That just confirms to the spammer that he or she has found a live address. They'll invite you to "click here" if you want to be removed from their mailing list. Expect more rather than less spam if you do.
Never open attachments unless you trust the sender and even then take care. Right-click the attachment and save it somewhere on your computer then check it with your anti-virus program before opening it.
Hand out your e-mail with care. Don't go to a dodgy site and type your work e-mail in a form. If you must go there, take out a free e-mail on Yahoo or Hot Mail and use it just for this site, discarding it when spam starts flooding in (as it certainly will).
Obfuscate your e-mail on your web site. Spammers use automation to scour the Web, stripping e-mail addresses from web sites and collating them to add to their distribution lists. Talk to Netco about disguising the way your email address is displayed on a web page.