ID3AS Blog
Spam Prevention Tips
Protect Your Email from SPAM
Let’s face it, SPAM is not cool – no one wants to deal with an overflowing inbox filled with junk mail. Outlandish deals, irrelevant offers, phony e-mail addresses…these are just a few of the signs of SPAM mail. To reevaluate your current email practices and avoid excess SPAM, follow the following simple steps:
Avoid publicly displaying your email: If possible, avoid having your email address on a website, in a forum, on a blog, in public comment or in any public setting. Unfortunately, these outlets have become an open invitation to SPAMers. If leaving your email address is unavoidable, we suggest using an alias address OR typing your email as follows: email [@] yourbusiness [.]com. Readers will understand that you are trying to avoid SPAM, but since SPAMers typically copy and paste e-mail addresses, they will end up with the wrong address.
Avoid checkboxes: When filling out forms online, watch out for checkboxes that are already checked.
Redirect your domain's email: If you own your own domain name, set up your mail server immediately and make it redirect to another email service. All mail delivered to your domain address will be forwarded to your default, primary email address and, most likely, scanned for SPAM before ever making it to your inbox.
DO NOT give your email address away: Unless you are confident that the recipient is a trusted party that you want to receive emails from or that will not share your email address with others, keep your email address private. If required, it is best to give a temporary email alias address or an email address associated with a free email system.
DO NOT unsubscribe from SPAM: Many SPAMers actually use unsubscribe requests as a way to verify that email addresses are legitimate. However, if you are receiving SPAM from a reputable company, unsubscribing is most likely safe. As a rule, if you don’t know the sender or don’t recognize an email associated with an email – don’t unsubscribe or reply.
Don't rely on free email services: Do not rely on AOL, Hotmail, Gmail, Yahoo or other generic email addresses for business purposes. Many companies that provide free email services have lists of subscriber's emails that can be hacked.