October 2019
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This is a bi-monthly compilation of some of the questions that our clients have asked us recently! This issue is running a little late because we wanted to research an interesting question...
I continue to be beseiged by spam e-mail. Is there ANY way I can get rid of it? Unfortunately, spam (unsolicited commercial e-mail or "UCE") has been a fact of life almost since the beginning of e-mail and despite numerous attempts at software and legal remedies, it continues to be a blight even greater than what we all used to see (and still to, to some degree) in our streetside mailboxes. There are a few countermeasures to consider. First, you should recognize that any time you give out your e-mail to anyone, there is a chance that it will be harvested for spam. So you need to be careful about where you share that precious address. One tactic which I and other folks employ is the creation of a "throwaway" e-mail address. Many Internet vendors provide subscribers with the option of having more than one e-mail address and, if you have that option, you may want to consider creating a "trash" e-mail address which you can use anytime you have to provide a valid e-mail address to someone but you don't care if you ever receive a message to that address. If your provider doesn't offer additional e-mail addresses, you might employ gmail, hotmail or any one of the other free e-mail services for the same purpose. While you may want to check your "trash" address occasionally, be prepared to abandon it anytime the tide of spam gets out of hand. Second, legitimate mass-mailers (like Mailchimp, which One Click Wonders employs for this newsletter) provide a safe "unsubscribe" option to remove your address from their databases. But beware, less reputable mass-mailers may either not provide a mechanism for unsubcribing or, even worse, use an unsubscription ruse as a way to confirm that their messages are being received. This can not only not slow down the flood of spam but also find your address re-sold to other mass-mailers for even more aggravation in your inbox. Third, there are software options which can reduce the apparent load of spam you receive by filing messages from known spam sources into another mailbox. Software solutions rely on database sources that track spam to make that shift. The spam isn't stopped, only diverted from your primary inbox. "Spamseive" is one such software option for Mac users, "Spamwasher" is available for the PC and there are others for both operating systems. These software approaches use various algorithms to determine whether a message is spam or not with varying degrees of effectiveness Fourth, the databases that help most software solutions operate depend on reports of spam. If you are really dedicated, you can help resolve the spam problem by reporting such incidents. If you can determine the address the spammer is using to collect information (usually NOT the reply address but one somewhere in the body of the message), you might consider forwarding a copy of the offending message to the abuse unit of the offending message's carrier (abuse@yahoo.com, abuse@hotmail.com, etc.). This is a longshot, as spammers are pretty good at concealing their locations, but for "Nigerian scam" messages and others of that ilk, you might be providing a service. Spam is a scourge and, as you can see, there is no one perfect countermeasure. Still, Terri and I stand ready to try to help you with spam issues or any other concerns you might have concerning your computer and its use. What do you want to know more about? There are still many other topics we could talk about here or in a personal consultation. We welcome your comments and questions for future issues of the OCW Insider. You also can give one of us a call or shoot an e-mail and we'll set up an appointment to meet with you! |
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phone: 864.710.7009 email: dave@oneclickwonders.com |
phone: 864.633.6707 email: terri@oneclickwonders.com |