Spam Prevention for Users
By taking care about the way you use email it is possible to reduce the volume of spam that reaches your inbox.
- General Tips
- Protect your email address
- Read email safely
- Send email safely
- Secure your PC
- Don't support spammers
- Filter your email
- Take action
General Tips
How do I stop getting spam? - www.bbc.co.uk/webwise/askbruce/articles/email/spam_1.shtml
Help keep spam out of your in box - www.microsoft.com/protect/yourself/email/spam.mspx
Reducing Spam - www.us-cert.gov/cas/tips/ST04-007.html
Stop Spam Here - stopspamhere.ca/
Minimising exposure: simple steps to combat spam - www.sophos.com/security/best-practice/spam.html
GetNetWise Spam Tips - spam.getnetwise.org/tips/
Spam Rules - www.rickconner.net/spamweb/spamrules.html
Thwarting Spammers - www.dummies.com/WileyCDA/DummiesArticle/id-1565,subcat-USING.html
Office of Fair Trading tips to help you fight back - www.oft.gov.uk/oft_at_work/consumer_initiatives/scams/
The Spam Series - email.about.com/od/spamandgettingridofit/Spam_and_How_to_Get_Rid_of_It.htm
Some “Magic Bullets” for stopping junk e-mail - www.pan-am.ca/spammyths/magicbullets.html
When spammers invade your mailbox... - www.pan-am.ca/spammyths/whenspamstrikes.html
Getting Rid of "Spam" - www.spamprimer.com/
Help! I've been Spammed! What do I do? - www.ncf.ca/ip/freenet/subs/complaints/spam/faqs/help-spam.txt
How to reduce your spam - www.spamnation.info/notes/guides/GeneralAdvice.html
Spam Prevention: Don't Let Spammers Find You! - www.spamlaws.com/prevent-spam.html
Anti Spam Web — Tips Against Spam - www.antispamweb.com/i-hate-spam.htm
How to Stop Spam Email - www.mahalo.com/how-to-stop-spam-email
How do I avoid getting spam? - www.webaccessstrategies.com/blog/id/how-do-i-avoid-getting-spam/
Protect your email address
In order for a spammer to reach you they need to somehow acquire your email address. If you can limit the means by which spammers can do that you can minimise the amount of spam that is even sent to you in the first place.
- Guard your primary email address
- Take care when signing up
- Remove your address from websites and directories
- Don't unsubscribe from spam
- Disguise your email address
- Create an unusual email address
- Use secondary screen names and email addresses
- Be careful with file sharing
Guard your primary email address
The Spam Experiment - www.philb.com/spamex.htm
Why Am I Getting All This Spam? - www.cdt.org/speech/spam/030319spamreport.shtml
How do spammers get email addresses? - www.private.org.il/harvest.html - mirrors: 1
Avoiding Spam - www.cexx.org/spam.htm
Fighting Spam - camworld.org/essays/spam.html
A spamvertized CD with e-mail addresses - https://rejo.zenger.nl/abuse/emailcd.php
How to avoid spam - www.rickconner.net/spamweb/avoiding.html
Minimising exposure: simple steps to combat spam - www.sophos.com/security/best-practice/
How Do I Avoid Being Spammed? - www.webaccessstrategies.com/blog/id/how-do-i-avoid-getting-spam/
The Spam Arms Race - www.brain-terminal.com/articles/tech/spam-arms-race.html
How to Avoid Spambots - www.projecthoneypot.org/how_to_avoid_spambots.php
Building Your Personal Anti-Spam Strategy - macdevcenter.com/pub/a/mac/2002/11/01/spam.html
Understanding How Spammers Steal Your E-Mail Address - www.ceas.cc/papers-2005/163.pdf
Spam Experiment - spamexperiment.blogspot.com/
How Spammers Get Your Email Address - email.about.com/od/spamandgettingridofit/a/spam_finds_you.htm
Is the WHOIS Service a Source for email Addresses for Spammers? - www.icann.org/en/committees/security/sac023.pdf
McAfee Spam Experiment - www.mcafeespamexperiment.com/
Take care when signing up
Read the small print, watch out for pre-checked boxes and check the reputation of the site you are signing up with.
SiteAdvisor Analysis - www.siteadvisor.com/analysis/
Untrusted Unsubscribe Lookup - www.lashback.com/unsubsafetools/UntrustedUnsubscribeLookup.aspx
Remove your address from websites and directories
Try typing your email address into a search engine, and check online directories.
Online marketers and 'e-pending' - cc.uoregon.edu/cnews/spring2004/epend.html
Inside the creepy Miller Brewing spam probe - spamkings.oreilly.com/archives/2006/02/inside_the_creepy_miller_brewi.html
Don't unsubscribe from spam
Spammers want you to believe that unsubscribing will stop them from sending email to you, but they have no incentive to do that.
Unsubscribing from spam — still not a good idea - www.viruslist.com/en/weblog?discuss=167640026&return=1
Disguise your email address
On usenet, websites, chat rooms, and anywhere that your address is publicly exposed, make sure it is in a form that a spambot can't easily pick it up.
Create an unusual email address
When chosing a new email address use one that is hard to crack - make it more than a few characters long with a few unusual characters like underscores if they are allowed.
Use secondary accounts and disposable email addresses
If you need to use an email address or an account that could be used to work out your email address then make use of any secondary accounts you can to avoid spreading your primary account around. If you don't have that option then make use of disposable email addresses.
Ditch Your Old E-Mail Addresses - howto.wired.com/wiki/Ditch_Your_Old_E-mail_Addresses
Be careful with file sharing
Spammers Use Peer-to-Peer Harvesting To Spam Millions of Users - www.circleid.com/posts/study_finds_spammers_use_p2p_harvesting_to_spam_millions
Read email safely
Avoid web bugs
Read mail in plain text, switch off the preview pane, or disable the automatic downloading of graphics in HTML mail.
Email "web bug" test - www.nthelp.com/OEtest/oe.htm
Web Bug FAQ - www.eff.org/Privacy/Marketing/web_bug.html
Don't reply to spam
Do not respond to spammers - www.cis.hut.fi/kaip/spam/remove.en.html
Don't follow links in spam
Links in spam may contain an encoded version of your email address, so following them may confirm that your email address is valid and read.
Send email safely
Don't send chain letters
Your address will just get more widely spread on PCs that might leak your email address to a spammer.
Thanks. No. - www.thanksno.com/
Protect others' email addresses
Use BCC if you send mails out to a lot of people to avoid their addresses spreading.
Secure your PC
Prevent your email address being harvested from your PC, or your PC being used as a spam zombie.
Don't support spammers
- Understand what spam is
- Delete spam unread
- Don't buy from spam
- Boycott known spamming companies
- Think before you respond
- Choose an ISP that doesn't support spam
Understand what spam is
Spam is unsolicited bulk messages. It doesn't matter who they come from, what they advertise, or whether you want to buy the product it sells: if you didn't ask to get it, and it's sent in bulk, it's spam.
Delete spam unread
If you are not reporting spam, don't read it. As soon as you realise that an email you have received is spam, just delete it. You won't learn anything new, and the offers are likely to be scams.
Don't buy from spam
Spam: Don't Buy it - www.spamdontbuyit.org/
The Boulder Pledge - www.panix.com/~tbetz/boulder.shtml
Why you must not do business with spammers - www.rickconner.net/spamweb/dontbuy.html
Sophos Spam Pledge - www.sophos.com/pledge
Boycott known spamming companies
If you are aware that a company you might normally buy from, or a policitian you might normally vote for, is sending spam then consider letting them know that you are changing your behaviour because of their spamming.
Think before you respond
Be sceptical of anything that seems too good to be true - or extremely urgent - both are likely to be scams.
Choose an ISP that doesn't support spam
Learn about the ISP choices in your area, then compare them to lists of known spam sources and lists of suggested good ISPs. Ask around on spam discussion boards, and educate yourself before you pay.
Reduce spam by educating your ISP - pages.infinit.net/filmore/educateYourISP.htm
Filter your email
Filtering your spam - www.rickconner.net/spamweb/filtering.html
A guide to writing your own mail filters - www.spamnation.info/notes/guides/Filters.html
Personal filtering
Choose a personal spam filter for your email client that suits you.
ISP filtering
Take advantage of any ISP provided spam filtering that is offered, or switch to an ISP that offers spam filtering.
Take action
Track and report spam
See Track Spam and Reporting Spam.
Sue spammers
Review the spam laws in your area, and then consider taking legal action if appropriate.
Don't take guerilla action
Although there are several methods you can use to take things further, which are listed under Guerilla Tactics, they are mostly abusive, time consuming and ineffective.
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons License. SPAM is a trademark of Hormel Foods.
Page last updated: 30-Jun-2009