Ahhh SPAM… No one likes it, and most everyone deals with it. There is no simple and easy one-solution to rid your inbox of junk mail, but there are some tricks that you can do to help decrease the amount that you receive on a regular basis.
ADDING A JUNK FOLDER
Adding a JUNK folder in your webmail (which is direct access to the server) allows us to run a type of ‘learned’ script that ‘teaches’ your email account which emails to block from coming through. Over time, you should see a decrease in spam that reaches your inbox.
- STEP 1: Log into webmail.
- STEP 2: Create a folder in your inbox called JUNK.
- Note: each webmail interface is a little different, so we request that you use HORDE.
- STEP 3: Log into your webmail once a day and move all of your spam emails into your JUNK folder.
Most importantly: please let us know when you start doing this, as we will ensure that the teaching script is running on a daily basis on your account.
AVOID GIVING YOUR EMAIL ADDRESS TO ONLINE SERVICES
A lot of websites sell their client information to advertising agencies that distribute your email without your knowledge. In addition, not all data collection sites use the best security when protecting their client/subscriber data, and so their systems become vulnerable to spammer software.
The best route would be to create a generic email that you use only for this purpose, like a gmail, yahoo, hotmail account. This avoids your work emails from being scattered around without your knowledge. The added benefit is that if the level of spam on this account becomes intolerable over time, you can simply replace the account with another generic one, without it affecting your business.
AVOID DISPLAYING YOUR EMAIL ADDRESS ON YOUR WEBSITE
Spamming software has the capability to ‘scrape’ your website content in search of email addresses that are displayed within your content.
For example, if you invite your users to email you at yourname@yourdomain.com, the spamming software recognizes this email address format and add you to their spam list.
Alternatives:
You can hide your email address by typing “click here to email us” and setting a hyperlink to your actual email address. This is not a fool-proof method, however, as advanced spamming softwares are now able to scrape, not only the content text, but also the source code of your site for hidden email addresses.
The next method is to break up your email address: yourname @ yourdomain.com. This is a generally accepted method to display your email, however you may have some users who copy this down, including the extra spaces, causing issues for that very small group of people.
Finally, the BEST method is to use an online form for users to submit emails to. This eliminates your email from being listed on your site at all, and protects your email from being compromised.