What is "spam"?
How did the spammers get my address?
Where does spam originate?
How can I prevent spam from ending up in my inbox?
How do I configure the filters in my e-mail program?
How do I create a "white list" in Outlook Express?
What can I do if I have been spammed?
How do I find the spammer's ISP?
What is an e-mail header?
How do I view the e-mail header in my e-mail program?
I have the e-mail header, now what?
Now that I have the originating IP address of the spammer, to whom do I complain?


What is "spam"?

Also known as unsolicited commercial e-mail (UCE) or unsolicited bulk email (UBE), spam is basically the junk mail of the Internet world. You've been spammed if you receive unrequested e-mail from an unfamiliar person or business. Spammers send out many copies of the same e-mail to people who did not choose to receive it. The majority of spam messages are commercial advertising.
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How did the spammers get my address?

Spammers create their potential target lists by searching through the Web for e-mail addresses (web sites, Usenet groups, and bulletin boards) or by obtaining Internet mailing lists illegally. The username portion of your e-mail address may also be common enough for the spammer to get a successful delivery by simply sending mail to every common name at your Internet Service Provider's hostname.
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Where does spam originate?

The site cluelessmailers.org has cataloged some of the companies involved in sending out unsolicited commercial email.
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How can I prevent spam from ending up in my inbox?

* Avoid opening spam messages and never reply to spam. If you do open or reply to these messages, it may initiate additional e-mail spam and it confirms to the sender that your e-mail account is active.

* Guard your e-mail address as you would your credit card information! When asked to submit a valid e-mail address with online web forms, evaluate the integrity of the company to whom you are supplying information. What is their privacy policy? Do they actually abide by this policy? If you must give out an email address in these cases, you may find that obtaining a free web based e-mail address as a throw away address is useful for such purposes.

* Use filtering software to automate the tedious task of identifying spam. There are many free utilities available for download which are quite effective when combined with the built in filters available with your current e-mail program. Digital Ark highly recommends the free program POPFile, available at http://popfile.sourceforge.net/

* If you post frequently to newsgroups, then mangling your e-mail address in the "reply-to" field may be effective in stopping spam. For example, if your e-mail address is "whyme@isp.ca", then your reply address could be changed to "whyme@isNOSPAMp.ca". In your signature file, instruct any one who wishes to send e-mail to you to delete, "NOSPAM", from your return address.
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How do I configure the filters in my e-mail program?

Managing Mail Filters in Microsoft Outlook Express

Outlook Express filters are called "Rules" and are found in the Inbox Assistant. By using the Inbox Assistant, you can have incoming messages that meet certain criteria sent to the folders you want, forwarded to a contact in your address book or even thrown away. To establish Rules, just follow the simple steps below:

* From the Tools menu, select Inbox Assistant.
* Click Add and a Properties window will open.
* Define the criteria you want the incoming messages to match by typing in the appropriate fields in the top portion of the window.
* In the Perform the following action area, define the desired action by checking the appropriate box, then click the folder, person or file you want to send the matching incoming messages to.
* When you have finished, click OK. The Inbox Assistant window will reappear with your rule (filter). If it appears correct, click OK and your filter will be saved.
* Once saved, the filter can be removed or modified by using the Inbox Assistant.

Tips

You can specify multiple filters or rules for incoming messages.
To change the priorities by which messages are sorted, click the Move Up or Move Down buttons in the Inbox Assistant dialog box.
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Managing Mail Filters in Netscape Messenger

Netscape Messenger allows you to create and maintain message filters so that Messenger automatically matches criteria you set, including filing messages in a folder when they arrive. To create a filter that handles incoming messages follow the steps below:

* In the Messenger window, choose Message Filters from the Edit menu.
* In the Message Filters dialog box, click New.
* Use the Message Filters Rules dialog box to edit or define an action you want a filter to perform and the type of messages to which you want to apply the action.
* Type a name for the filter.
* Select the "Match" option you want. Use the pop-up menus to choose filtering criteria and type a keyword to be used in the search.
* Click More to add criteria and Fewer to remove them, then use the filtering action you want.
* Type information about this filter in the Description field.
* When you are done, click OK.

Tips

You can use the Message Filters box to edit, delete and turn off filters.
You can define the order in which the filters are applied by clicking the up and down arrows.
You can log your filter activity for future reference.
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Managing Mail Filters in Eudora

Mail filters in Eudora perform actions on incoming/outgoing e-mail based on matching criteria that you specify. To create a filter that handles incoming messages follow the steps below:

* Click the Tools menu then the "Filters" menu.
* In the Eudora Filters Dialog click the "new" button to create a filter.
* Leave the check mark on incoming to match new mail only.
* Select the appropriate part of the e-mail you wish to match under the first header drop down menu. This can be anything from the "subject", the "to" address or even the entire message itself.
* Define the criteria for the match in question with the "contains" edit box.
* You may skip the next section with the ignore and second header controls.
* In the action area, you may redirect the matched e-mail to a spam mailbox with the "Transfer to" option. You can delete the message with the "Sever Options" selection.
* Closing the filter dialog will prompt you to save the filter.

Tips

You can specify multiple filters for incoming messages.
You can use the Message Filters box to edit, delete and turn off filters.
You can log your filter activity for future reference.
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How do I create a "white list" in Outlook Express?

A "white list" is a list of people you do wish to receive email from.

If you are using Outlook Express on Windows:

* Add the addresses of the people you know and like into your address book if they aren't already`there.
* Open the rules window by selecting Tools->Message Rules->Mail...
* Click on the New button at the upper right.
* In the uppermost pane, put a checkmark in the box labeled Where the From line contains people.
* Click on people in the bottom pane.
* Add all the people you know you like, then click OK.
* In the middle pane, put checkmarkes in the boxes labeled
* Move it to the specified folder and Stop processing more rules. (You'll probably need to scroll down.)
* Click on specified in the bottom pane and select a folder to put your spam into.
* Click on OK buttons until the windows are closed.
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What can I do if I have been spammed?

If you wish to do something about spam you have received, then you should report it to the spammer's ISP (Internet Service Provider). Most ISP's realize it is bad for their reputation to have this activity on their networks and they should take action against the spammer consistent with their AUP (Acceptable Use Policy) or TOS (Terms of Service).
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How do I find the spammer's ISP?

You need to open up the e-mail header and find the spammer's IP address.
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What is an e-mail header?

E-mail headers are normally hidden from view in your e-mail program. They contain the information about how, where and when the e-mail traveled during its trip on the Internet.
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How do I view the e-mail header in my e-mail program?

SpamCop.net, an organization dedicated to the reporting and elimination of spam, maintains a fairly comprehensive list of e-mail programs and the steps required to view the e-mail header. Go to http://spamcop.net/fom-serve/cache/19.html to find out how to get the header of an e-mail.
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I have the e-mail header, now what?

Visit the site http://combat.uxn.com/tracing.html for a breakdown of how to read an e-mail header.
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Now that I have the originating IP address of the spammer, to whom do I complain?

Depending on the source of the spam, you will need to use a "whois" utility. Regional network information centres provide information on the specific IP address you are tracking. If in doubt, start with one, and it will likely refer you to another one. The four major network information centres providing whois information of specific IP addresses are:


ARIN

RIPE

APNIC

LACNIC

 

 

Or you could try http://combat.uxn.com/


For more information on reporting spam, see http://openrbl.org/spamlinks/report.htm
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