Junk e-mail, like its paper counterpart, is a staple of the messaging systems in place today. In fact, it's estimated that 90% of all incoming mail traffic in North America is spam. That's a lot of trash!

Lucky for us, some very intelligent applications called spam filters, or more generally e-mail filters, are able to detect and purge a majority of this from most inboxes. However, spam filters, like any other heuristics-based scanner, are never 100% effective at detecting unwanted e-mails. On top of that, spammers are constantly developing new tactics for getting you to open that e-mail.

So how can the average computer user hope to defend themselves? Like anything else in the computer world: with knowledge! Here are some of the top guidelines for avoiding spam:


  • Use a good spam filter. If you find that your inbox is inundated with unwanted messages, you might need to do some research and see what type of spam filter you are using, if any. Most free online web mail systems, such as Yahoo!, Google Gmail, or MSN, have basic filters built in. If your mail goes to an account provided by your ISP (AT&T, Cox, Suddenlink, etc.) you may need to provide your own. Finally, if your work email account is the one suffering from a spam overage, check with your IT department or give us a call.
  • Pay close attention to sender addresses and links. Spammers like to disguise their email by masquerading as a legitimate person or business. Most web mail sites and e-mail applications, such as Outlook, will allow you to view the message header which may reveal a different address as the sender. Additionally, hyperlinks prompting you to click can easily appear to send you somewhere legitimate, but actually redirect you to a malicious site. Don't be fooled by what appears to be an authentic email address or link!
  • Watch for poor grammar and spelling. The majority of spam originates outside the United States from countries where English is not the native language. E-mails that use an incorrect tense, seem to be missing words, or simply have very odd word choice are most likely being typed by a non-native spammer. Unless you are expecting mail from outside the United States, send these messages straight to the trash.
  • No one gets lucky on the Internet. If an e-mail seems too good to be true, delete it. No one has ever won money or saved hundreds on designer watches through an unsolicited e-mail.
  • Trust your friends, but not their e-mails. Sure, you'd do anything to help your friend, but if you get an email at 3am from your best bud asking for travel money because he's stuck in India, you might want to verify it first.
  • If in doubt, get on the phone. If you absolutely cannot decide whether a suspicious e-mail is legitimate, make a phone call and get a human being to confirm it.
  • Facebook is no exception. The popular social networking site has also become a huge medium for spam. Be very suspicious of messages and wall posts asking you to follow a link to see "a funny picture of you" or anything similar. These are nearly always malicious, since Facebook has far more popular tools for sharing photos and video without posting a hyperlink.
If you have more questions regarding spam filtering, feel free to call our support team at 337-893-3681 or send us an email at info@infotech.us.