Do you have several email addresses and each one receives unwanted solicitations? Do you spend hours each day deleted this junk mail until you find any relevant email? There are ways of reducing and even preventing getting some of these solicitations, but spammers always find new ways of spamming you. You will never eliminate spam or junk mail.
Do not reply to email from questionable email addresses. Many spammers use autoresponders that will bounce your email back to you as undeliverable email. Or you do send an email that just validated your functioning email address. Sometimes, legitimate advertisers will allow you to be removed from email or subscriber lists. These are usually email opt-outs from those who asked your permission to opt-in in the first place. Remember that you may have allowed a third party emailing when you signed up for a newsletter, entered a contest or purchased an item. You asked for it!
Do not post your email address all over the Internet unless you wish to share it. I post my business email, because I hope to get customers. I try not to post my personal accounts, because I get too much email already. I started a Hotmail account to receive newsletters, but now I have difficulty receiving them. Either the account is too full of junk mail or the sender of the newsletter doesn't like "free" email account addresses that are notorious for spamming. If you give your email for every contest or freebie, make sure you uncheck the boxes for sharing your email with third party affiliates.
Check your filter settings with your email client to sort your possibly good email from your junk mail. I also scan the email addresses and the subject line and delete anything that has a stupid email address like 2CMeCum@yahoo.com or funKeeChik69@hotmail.com. I delete email that has a subject line that does not interest me. Once you have gotten rid of the "no way" email, you can possibly find recognizable email addresses from family, friends and others you know. Place them on your "safe list", so you get a warning, if you accidentally try to delete email you want. Answer good email immediately as they are most important to you. Then sort through the rest.
By law, advertisers must include a one-time email statement and/or an opt-out or remove me option at the end of the email. If they do not, you may report them. There are many sites on the Internet where you can report them. Do not respond to them.
The most important tip is this one: DO NOT patronize businesses who spam. If you do, they will consider this form of advertising effective and continue to use it. Stop spam. This includes those darn popup windows that we instantly close without reading them. I do not wish to disable Javascript just because someone includes those popups and popunders on their sites. Be sure to use software like Ad Aware to keep track of spyware (hidden programs on your hard drive) and cookies (files on your hard drive).
There are more ways of reducing spam. These are a few. Use search engines to find more information.
Yvette Kuhns, Power Pages Web Design, November 27, 2002
NOTE: Everyone has a friend who sends mail to multiple recipients. Do not forward or reply to mail that includes your email address in the To, CC or BCC. Always compose a new mail rather than help your friend share email addresses like spreading a cold!
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