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DEL.ICIO.USAnother serving of anti-spam
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
E-mail spam has interested me for a long time. Almost everyone hates the stuff and dozens of companies offer solutions.
But nothing really works. You can slow down spam but it’s almost impossible to stop.
The most foolproof method I know is to use software that requires senders to prove that they are humans (hey spammers aren’t human). It’s called challenge and response. You send an e-mail to me. My anti-spam software automatically sends one back to you before delivering your e-mail. You’re asked to copy down some letters and numbers and send that back. The notion is that a spammer - sending out hundreds of thousands of e-mails - can’t do that. Once all that happens, your e-mail is delivered.
It works but it’s sure clunky. I know - at work where I literally get hundreds of e-mails a day - I just don’t take the time to deal with that extra hurdle.
One of the latest anti-spam technologies - you can read about it here - uses still a different technique. You are offered ‘disposable’ e-mail addresses. So when you post on a blog, or order a widget, you use a disposable address, not your own. Mail to that address is delivered to your real e-mail account. But when the spammers start using that address, you discard that disposable address.
I see how it works - and the link is to an article that raves over the service - but I doubt that I’d go to all that trouble. I hate spam but - for me - it’s another case of the cure being worse than the disease. But you may see things differently so take a look at the article. And, as always, if you have tips on avoiding spam, I’d be glad for you to post them.
Permalink | Comments (2) | Post your comment | Categories: Viruses, spam, adware, etc.
Comments
By Ashley
November 29, 2006 09:45 AM | Link to this
I use two EarthLink anti-spam tools:
1.Disposable email addresses. They give you 5 at a time integrated right into their web mail portal. You can delete and add new ones if they become a problem.
2.Whitelisting. This means that email I receive that match records in my address book pass right through. All other emails are challenge/response. If I add an individual email or an entire domain to my address book from a challenge/response then all future email will come through.
My email is almost 100% spam free.
By C. Henry & BIE
December 5, 2006 05:19 PM | Link to this
Bill, Think about it for a moment. Let’s say the perfect email spam stopper truly exist. It’s job would be to stop the spam before it invades your mailbox at the blink of an eye. Then give you a detail report of the origin of the spammer and how you could prevent this person or group from ever contacting you again. Would not that be ‘outstanding’? Yes, with additional features, but it would not solve the problem of how spammers got your email address in the first place.
Number One: If you really desire to stop spammers; stop “forwarding” messages to start. Tell your friends and business associates to follow suit. (E.g. Electronic chain letter)
Number Two: When you go to trade conventions, don’t give your email address unless you know for sure that the company or individual will not sale or share your email address with third parties. (Get it in writing.)
Number Three: Create a Junk Email Address (JEA) that you can check from time to time to share with web sites that solicit you or chatroom buddies that you don’t know. (Remember: Never open attachments from unknown companies or person you have not confirmed a delivery with before hand.)
Just three things to think about. (http://www.networkingmenu.com) C. Henry & BIE