SPAM | Identifying Spam When it Arrives

Most of us have opened our email program and found, alongside correspondence from people that we know, offers for products from commercial web sites. Some of these emails we expect. We have asked to be notified of sales and other opportunities or joined a mailing list offered by the company. Many times, however, the offers are from companies that we have never done business with and may have never even heard of. This is Spam, unsolicited bulk email, and can quickly lead to a massive overload of your inbox. thee are people that have reported receiving upward of 200-1000 pieces of spam per day.

Identifying Spam as soon as it occurs is the first step to preventing it from happening again. Once your email address is in circulation with these companies, you are well on your way to a very nasty problem. Advertising from legitimate companies is one form. The rest are for illegal services, pornographic material, questionable products, and fraudulent schemes. It is invasive and many times illegal. Spam is the worst form of junk mail and a typical reason why many people have to change their email addresses.

In best cases, the clue can be found in the subject line. If you are offered quick money or a chance to find your long lost high school classmate, you can probably guess that it is Spam. You may be amazed that, as you read your email, that these companies claim a right to send you this email because you have a relationship with one of their "partners" or "affiliates". All that this may mean is that they bought your email address from another company with dubious privacy policies. It is still Spam.

Spammers will try to trick you. Unfortunately for us, Spammers only need a response rate, by some estimates, of 0.0001% in order to be profitable. This means that they will use practically any measure to get you to open it before hitting the delete button. You may receive an email from Grandma or one asking for help in the subject line. Before you know it, you are reading their advertisement, if only out of curiosity. These spammers can be trickey.

Check the dates and times on any email that you are unsure of. These companies know that many email programs will sort the inbox by the earliest mail sent. As a result, they place false send dates and times on their Spam hoping that you will open them first.

The worst has to be the ones that seem to come from companies that you know and trust. They may claim to be from your internet service provider in the subject line or have a similar address to that company's name. It may look like it is from the accounts payable department of a major law firm. Spammers count on your curiosity and hope that you will respond. Even if you don't buy anything, they now know that your email address is connected to a live person and, if nothing else, can sell that address to someone else.

Read the To and From fields in any questionable email that you receive. If the To field is empty or filled with an anonymous address, then you have Spam. An anonymous address is typically something like freeoffer@happydays.com. An address from someone that you do not know through an account at hotmail, yahoo, or msn is probably Spam. These are anonymous, easy to get accounts that spammers use and then discard when they are done. By the time the Service Provider has been made aware that spam is originating from these accounts, the spammer is gone. Scrambled, random addresses (X12YT853@yahoo.com) from accounts like these are definitely not to be trusted regardless of the content.

Finally, if the email contains a story in which you are asked to do anything to help anyone, check the story out online. There are several great websites like truthorfiction.com that will help you sort through any potential scams or hoaxes perpetuated through email. These stories can range from silly pranks to dangerous fraud schemes and may need to be reported to the proper authorities before someone, like you, finds their bank account drained.

SPAM | Mail Server Blacklists and Spam

A white-list is a list of email senders whom you trust and would like to receive mail from. Conversely, a blacklist contains those that are not to be trusted. Blacklists need to be configured and administered on a server, at the ISP (Internet Service Provider) level or on your network. If you do not have such access, and most people do not, you can use the blacklists by choosing email services from companies that use such blacklisting techniques.

A mail server is designated as having an open relay when mail is processed in a location that is not local to either the sender or receiver. The mail server is unrelated to either party, and as such, has no business processing that email. Think of driving from your home in Washington, DC to your friend's home in Boston. If you pass through New York City on the way, that is to be expected. However, if you stop in Dallas, the route becomes suspect. An open relay mail server, whether intentional or not, is allowing mail to be routed through it that shouldn't be. In this way, spammers distribute large volumes of junk email in order to disguise their actions. Open relays used to be very common, like public mailboxes. You can drop a letter into any one without any notice of who you are. Spammers ruined this by using open relays to surreptitiously send spam without identifying themselves. When blocked by the administrator or ISP, they simply move on. They regularly scan IP addresses looking for open relay servers. When they find one, they exploit it.

Blacklists contain a database of open relay mail servers and those known to be a source of spam, and are used to filter email coming from those machines. The sender will receive a bounce message or mailer deamon telling them that their email is undeliverable. Often, the sender does not realize that they are on a blacklist or that their server is an open relay. They find out only when they attempt to send mail to someone who is uses a blacklist to filter for spam. If the sender is a spammer, the process is working. If the sender is you, the process is also working because it will force you to take steps to close that open relay or complain to the company who is handling your mail. By closing the holes in the email relay network, the spammers will be forced to stop sourcing their spam in this way. This is but one way to slow down, not stop, the spammers.

Blacklists have a very high probability of false-positives if used in blind faith. Depending on those that maintain the blacklist, email sent in good faith could land innocent people and mail servers on a blacklist. This usually happens to one of two ways. The first is through the procedure most blacklist providers use to find open relays. They simply do what the spammers do and scan IP address to look for a server that will allow them to connect and send mail. Once the program finds an open relay they add the server to the blacklist. The system administrator of the server is usually never notified. There can be mistakes made in this process leaving the administrator with a huge problem when mail starts getting lost or bounced back. Second, you may receive an IP from your provider that was previously blacklisted, even though it may no longer be an open relay. To avoid this, check the IP address against the known blacklists and ask your provider for a new one if it indeed appears.

Do you know whether your ISP maintains an open relay? If you discovered that your employee was doing work for someone else while on your time, you would certainly put a stop to it. Open relay mail servers are doing exactly that and need to be confronted. A mail server should be configured to only relay messages from authenticated users on the network. If properly protected, the server will simply tell the sender that they do not work for outsiders and bounce the message back. More and more, administrators of servers are blocking the open relay. This has been instumental in slowing down spam.

SPAM | Phishing For Your Identity

Who hasn't received an email directing them to visit a familiar website where they are being asked to update their personal information? The website needs you to verify or update your passwords, credit card numbers, social security number, or even your bank account number. You recognize the business name as one that you've conducted business with in the past. So, you click on the convenient take me there link and proceed to provide all the information they have requested.

Unfortunately, you find out much later that the website is bogus. It was created with the sole intent to steal your personal information. You, my friend, have just been phished.

Phishing (pronounced as fishing) is defined as the act of sending an email to a recipient falsely claiming to have an established, legitimate business. The intent of the phisher is to scam the recipient into surrendering their private information, and ultimately steal your identity.

It is not at easy as you think to spot an email phishing for information. At first glance, the email may look like it is from a legitimate company. The "From" field of the e-mail may have the .com address of the company mentioned in the e-mail. The clickable link even appears to take you to the company's website, when in fact, it is a fake website built to replicate the legitimate site.

Many of these people are professional criminals. They have spent a lot of time in creating emails that look authentic. Users need to review all emails requesting personal information carefully. When reviewing your email remember that the "From Field" can be easily changed by the sender. While it may look like it is coming from a .com you do business with, looks can be deceiving.

Also keep in mind that the phisher will go all out in trying to make their email look as legitimate as possible. They will even copy logos or images from the official site to use in their emails. Finally, they like to include a clickable link that the recipient can follow to conveniently update their information.

A great way to check the legitimacy of the link is to point at the link with your mouse. Then, look in the bottom left hand screen of your computer. The actual website address to which you are being directed will show up for you to view. It is a very quick and easy way to check if you are being directed to a legitimate site.

Finally, follow the golden rule. Never, ever, click the links within the text of the e-mail, and always delete the e-mail immediately. Once you have deleted the e-mail, empty the trash box in your e-mail accounts as well. If you are truly concerned that you are missing an important notice regarding one of your accounts, then type the full URL address of the website into your browser. At least then you can be confident that you are, in fact, being directed to the true and legitimate website.

SPAM | Protect Your Email Address From Spammers

Spam only occurs when the spammer is able to get your email address. They have a variety of methods for doing this, some legal and some not. Either way, the result is the same. You have become a spam victim. The single most important action that you can take to prevent spam from occurring is to keep your email address off of those lists. There are a number of ways that this can be accomplished, starting with never giving out your address to anyone whom you do not know or are not conducting business with. You wouldn't broadcast your phone number over the internet, so why is your email any different? Be careful when putting your email address into directories or other form of printed lists. Those directories could end up on the internet giving millions of people access to your email. If, for example, you are a member of your alumni association and they decide to build a webpage with that information, your address has been exposed however unintentionally. Make sure of the privacy practices that are in place with any organization that you give your email address to.

Do not give your email address out willingly over the internet. Your email address is often required when purchasing goods. If you are willing to give them payment information, then you should feel comfortable giving them your email. However, the fact that they will process the sale in accordance with law does not mean that they won't sell lists to spammers. The sale of goods over the internet is regulated and enforced much more stringently than address list distribution. Often it is just too difficult to prove. The site may ask you if they can share your information with their "partners" or "affiliates". These are simply companies to whom they sell information for the purpose of advertisement - spammers. This box is almost always automatically checked for yes, so make sure you uncheck it before submitting your order.

Perhaps you would like to join a mailing list, newsgroup, or register with a certain website. Before doing so, read the privacy policy of the website involved and make sure that they will not sell or share your information with anyone else. In a forum situation do not allow others to email you via that site. They can simply post a response on the site and you can check it at your convenience. Keep your email address hidden and not viewable to others when setting up the account. Spammers will try to join mailing lists for the sole intention of harvesting the addresses of other members. If all else fails, create a junk email account. This account can be used to fulfill the requirement while keeping your real email address secret and off of any lists.

Do not respond to any spam that you receive. This includes following the opt-out link at the bottom of the page, sending irritated replies, or doing any business with a company that sends you spam. They have already shown their willingness to ignore your privacy, and in most cases, the law. Responding only confirms your email address as real and attached to someone who reads their mail. You will likely continue receiving spam from that company, and additional spam from other spammers to whom they sold your address. Understanding that the reply only confirms your identity and keeps you on those distribution lists is a key to solving your problem. Likewise, do not use auto-responders with your email. Auto-responders are away messages that automatically let those who are sending you email know that you are unavailable. This is very convenient if you are going to be gone for some time. Unfortunately, this auto-response lets the spammers know that your email address is active.

Finally, do not forward chain letter emails. Forwarded chain letters can contain hundreds of email addresses before you ever get to the body of the letter. Spammers collect these email addresses and then build distribution lists. They may also try to identify the addresses of people with whom you communicate. This would allow them the ability to sneak by any anti-spam software by pretending to be from someone that you know.

SPAM | Beware of Investment Spam

Since the year 2004, there has been a sharp increase in the amount of investment spam we are receiving in our inbox. I personally receive up to 10 emails per day containing offers or lures to invest in various scams. It is estimated that millions of dollars are lost every year by people who have invested money in something they read about in an email. For the purposes of this discussion, we will outline each of the bogus investment opportunities that are circulating the internet so that if you encounter one of them, you will not be tricked into investing.

Pyramid schemes are probably the most popular. Typically, you will be asked to invest a certain amount of money, and then you are promised a return when new investors make an equal contribution. Eventually, the pyramid either collapses or the person who initiated the pyramid is able to make a lot of money, but no one else makes anything.

A common scam associated with the stock market is referred to as the pump and dump. This is when a small group of investors who hold a large number of shares in a penny stock hype the stock to the general public. The resulting frenzy drives up the price of the stock, at which point the pumpers dump their shares at a high price before the rest of the investors realize that the company is worthless.

Sometimes, pump and dumpers will engage in short selling (short selling is perfectly legal; you borrow stock from someone else and immediately sell it, hoping that the price of the stock will go down in the near future so that you can buy it back at a lower price and return it to the lender at a profit). With pump and dump short selling, the borrower instantly sells the stock that was loaned to him and then goes around spreading bad rumors about the company to drive the stock price down so he or she can buy it back at a low price before returning it to the lender.

You should ignore any emails you receive that promote offshore investing or prime banks. Promises of huge returns from offshore investments are usually totally disingenuous. Prime banks are the top 50 banks in the world. Solicitors for prime banks will ask for your money so that they can invest it in high yield prime bank financial instruments. However, they will likely invest your money in high risk, speculative investment vehicles that have absolutely no connection to prime banks whatsoever.

You should not necessarily ignore all of the investment spam in your inbox. You might receive an email containing a stock tip that could turn out to be a lucrative investment in the future. Just make sure you research the investment on your own before you partake in any investment that was sent to you via email.

SPAM | Is Your Inbox Crammed With Spam?

I receive approximately 5,000 emails containing spam each and every day. Well, maybe not that many, but it sure seems close to that figure. Spam is spiraling out of control and shows no signs of stopping. The question is, where does spam come from, and can you do anything about it?

Most of the spam I receive in my inbox is sexually explicit, but I still like to look at it because some of this junk is actually quite entertaining. My personal favorites are offers to purchase discounted Canadian Viagra, ads for pornographic websites, and bogus work-from-home programs.

How do these people get their grimy hands on your email address? One way they can get it is through opt-in email. When you order something online, as part of the subscription or service that you signed up for, you may have inadvertently agreed to receive offers via email from that company in the future.

As a result, said company adds you to their mailing list and begins to send you email. This is perfectly legal as long as the company provides you with a way to unsubscribe from their mailing list. If they do not provide you with a means to unsubscribe, then the emails they are sending you are considered spam.

To make matters worse, a spammer will sell your email address and any other information you submitted to them to hundreds or even thousands of other companies who are looking for leads. Before you know it, your email address has been circulated everywhere. Once this happens, there is almost no way to prevent spam from reaching your inbox.

Another common way your email address can end up on a mailing list is when an internet marketer purchases a list of email addresses from someone else, and then sends a joke or an interesting cartoon to everyone on that list and asks you to forward it along to all your friends and relatives.

Once you forward the message, the email has a program attached to it that will copy the list of addresses that the message has been forwarded to and send that list back to the person who originally sent you the email. So now, that person not only has your email address, but also has the email address of everyone you forwarded the message to.

Another popular technique is known as harvesting. This is accomplished by writing a simple retrieval program that searches through every web site listed on a search engine for a certain keyword, and then grabs any any email addresses that are posted on those sites, and subsequently sends them back to the harvester. Using this technology, it is possible to acquire thousands of email addresses in an hour or less.

Harvesting has become a legal dilemma. The email marketing community feels that they should be allowed to harvest email addresses that are posted on public websites. In their opinion, if someone has posted their email address for all to see, then other people have the right to contact that person and ask them questions or send them offers.

However, web sites where email addresses are posted have threatened legal action against anyone that harvests email addresses from their site and uses them to build spam lists. Unfortunately, these web sites really have no way to prevent this, and it will only get worse in the future.

We will never stop spam completely. Both big businesses and small businesses have a strong incentive to send bulk email, because it costs nothing, and is a valuable tool for increasing their customer base. Sending regular mail or hiring a telemarketer costs a lot of money and is extremely ineffective. As a result, most companies would prefer to send massive amounts of email. So, expect your inbox to be chock full of spam for many years to come.

Windows Defender Anti Spam

Windows Defender detects and removes spyware

Windows Defender is software that helps protect your computer against pop-ups, slow performance, and security threats caused by spyware and other unwanted software by detecting and removing known spyware from your computer. Windows Defender features Real-Time Protection, a monitoring system that recommends actions against spyware when it's detected, minimizes interruptions, and helps you stay productive.

The benefits of installing Windows Defender include:

Spyware detection and removal

• Windows Defender quickly and easily finds spyware and other unwanted programs that can slow down your computer, display annoying pop-up ads, change Internet settings, or use your private information without your consent.
• Windows Defender eliminates detected spyware easily at your direction, and if you inadvertently remove programs that you actually want, it's easy to get them back.
• Windows Defender allows you to schedule your scanning and removal times when it's convenient for you, whether it's on-demand or on a schedule that you set.

Improved Internet browsing safety

• Windows Defender helps stop spyware before it infiltrates your computer. Windows Defender also offers a continuous safeguard designed to target all the ways that spyware can infiltrate your computer.
• Windows Defender works without distracting you. It runs in the background and automatically handles spyware based on preferences that you set. You can use your computer with minimal interruption.

Protection against the latest threats

• A dedicated team of Microsoft researchers continuously searches the Internet to discover new spyware and develop methods to counteract it.
• A voluntary, worldwide network of Windows Defender users helps Microsoft determine which suspicious programs to classify as spyware. Participants help discover new threats quickly and notify Microsoft analysts, so that everyone is better protected. Anyone who uses Windows Defender can join this network and help report potential spyware to Microsoft.
• To help protect your computer from the latest threats, you can choose to have updates that counteract new spyware automatically downloaded to your computer.

Windows Defender is included with all versions of Windows Vista and is available to download for genuine copies of Windows XP Service Pack 2 or later, or Windows Server 2003 Service Pack 1 or later.

Preventing Spam - Adding a Spam Blocker

An important part of your computers defense is a spam blocker (also known as a spam filter). These filters prevent malicious code that is made by virus writers from being transferred onto your computer. Without a proper spam blocker viruses can be used to control a victims computer. To defend against this danger a blocker must be installed.

Spam blockers can be purchased from vendors world wide in either retails store or online. There are many spam blockers that can be downloaded for free from various sites. The most reliable spam blockers usually come with an annual cost but the benefits of having one outweigh the cost.

Filters are programmed with specific jobs to identify spam. I will briefly explain some of the some of the basic features that a filter uses to weed out spam:

Supplied rules and signatures: This is a list of well known list of spamming patterns that is used to identify spam messages.

Filtering policies for enterprises: These are custom made configurations that are made for a specific companies needs.

User preferences: These are the settings that the individual creates once the software is installed on the computer. These setting are focused on types of spam that annoys the user. This also controls how the software will function of the costumer's computer.

Pre defined blacklists: Another list of the widely known untrusted web addresses. These sites are be default blocked from access. If the user wishes to bypass this setting he must add them to his whitelist.

The last feature is a Quarantine list: This is a place where all messages are stored for the user to manually check. In the case of an accidental block, the user can still retrieve the message.

Once a message has been deemed as spam. It will usually be deleted instantly or within a set period of days.

With this information you should have a general idea of how spam blockers function and defend computers from daily spam.