The Basics: Executive Summary on Spam
"Spam" is defined as unsolicited commercial e-mail that is sent to you by unscrupulous people trying to make a fast buck -- usually by ripping you off. Many spams say that you can get off the mailing list when you ask, but very often if you try it, it leads to more junk mail because you're confirming to these unscrupulous people that your address is good. Just throw away any junk mail you get.
The people who send spam are, by definition, unscrupulous criminals who either want to defraud you by selling you junk, or unscrupulous criminals who are trying to steal your money by identity theft. This is serious business, and you need to be aware of their tactics by reading this entire site carefully!
Most wonder how spammers got their e-mail address. It is actually pretty easy for them: if your address is shown in any public place, spammers can and will find it. They use software to scan web sites, chat postings and more for any address they can find, and it's added to a list that spammers pass around.
There are, however, some ways to keep your address from spammers, but it's not as easy as you may think!
Once you start getting spam, it's too late: spammers won't "remove" you if you ask, and you will continue to get it forever until you get a new address that is not shown in any public place. (And even then, you can still get spam.)
There are, however, a few instances when you can reasonably safely ask to stop getting spam. We explain how to tell when it's safe.
There's a law, right? Right, but the federal "CAN-SPAM" law didn't help -- and actually made things worse. (What did you expect from politicians?!)
You can get some relief, however, by filtering spam from your own mail. We also give you tips on getting legitimate mail delivered -- whether you're trying to send it, or trying to receive it.
A very scary type of spam is e-mail that appears to be from your bank warning that you must "update" or "confirm" your account information. You're sent to a legitimate-looking web site to put in your account number, password, and other personal information. Banks do not send such messages -- ever! The e-mails are sent by identity thieves who want to drain your bank accounts. Don't fall for this scam! This con is called phishing (pronounced "fishing" -- they're fishing for your secret bank passwords so they can tap your accounts), and countless people fall for it every day. Don't join them; you could lose all your money.
Spam isn't the only e-mail pest. For instance, there are urban legends -- silly stories passed along as if they were true. One ridiculous example is an e-mail that tells you that billionares are tracking how often some stupid message is being forwarded, and they'll pay you cash for doing it. Of course, they cannot tell if you forward the mail. Even if they could, why in the world would they pay you to do it? They wouldn't: the point is to make you look like a fool -- which you are if you believe it and pass the message along. Pleas to help find a missing child are heart-wrenching, but are almost always false too.
The Internet is a wonderful resource that can help you find out nearly anything you want to know. It's also home to the same types of people who inhabit the real world: thieves, conmen, liars, cheats, exploiters and other ruffians. You can be robbed online just as easily as you can in a back alley. Keep alert! If something sounds too good to be true, and maybe it's a scam, trust your instincts: avoid them. Delete their e-mails and don't go to their web sites. There are plenty of good places to go.
If any of this is new to you, you really should read the entire text of this site, not just this summary. It includes the "whys" behind our advice, and obviously has more detail than this summary.
Want to Know More? Read the full Spam Primer starting here.
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