Are you tired of getting spam emails? If so, you’re not alone. Millions of people receive spam emails every day. These intrusions can be more than bothersome; they can pose genuine threats. Here is how to stop spam emails.
5 Spam Countermeasures
1. Empower Your Existing Email Filter
Most email providers have built-in spam filters to preemptively filter out unwanted emails. Whether you use Microsoft Outlook, Gmail, or any other option, you want to educate this filter to better recognize the types of spam emails that come your way. Do this by simply marking unwanted emails as spam. This acts as a preemptive shield against future messages from these sources, effectively barring them from accessing your inbox. While blocking an email can bring similar results, blocking doesn’t train your email provider to recognize new spam emails from unique email addresses.
2. Harness Third-Party Tools
Depending on your existing email provider, you may find the current spam filter to be less than ideal. For additional spam detection success, you could employ third-party spam filters to your advantage. A variety of such filters are available, designed to identify and block spam by scrutinizing email content. While there are many considerations when choosing a third-party filter, such as email provider or number of users, a great options is Microsoft Defender.
3. Divide and Conquer with Secondary Addresses
An email alias is an additional email address that forwards messages to your main inbox, enabling you to categorize and manage emails effectively. It can enhance privacy by using different addresses for different purposes, shield your primary email from spam, and simplify identification of sources. If one of your alias email addresses begins receiving too much spam, simply create a new one to replace it.
4. Take Charge of Image Auto-Loading
To counter graphic-based tracking, disable automatic image downloading in HTML emails. Frequently, spammers use linked graphics to monitor who engages with their emails. By refraining from enabling HTML mail and opting for plain text viewing, you effectively sidestep this surveillance mechanism.
5. Guard Your Address
Exercise prudence when divulging your email address. Only share it when you’re confident it’s safe. While signing up for online services, carefully peruse the privacy policy to comprehend how your email address will be utilized. Additionally, employ disposable email addresses for specific websites or services, enhancing your control over your digital identity.
Spam Email FAQs
How do spammers get my email address?
Spammers employ various tactics such as data breaches, website scraping, and phishing to obtain email addresses. They can also buy or share lists, generate random addresses, and search public records.
Is it better to block spam emails or just delete them?
It is generally better to block spam emails than to simply delete them to prevent future emails from the same sender. However, to prevent spam emails from new senders, it is helpful to report them rather than simply block them. Email providers use our feedback to improve their spam filters, so by reporting spam, we can help to prevent more spam from reaching our inboxes in the future.
Why am I suddenly getting so many spam emails?
Email lists: Your email address may have been added to a spammer’s list, either through a data breach, a malicious website, or by someone selling or sharing email addresses.
Data breaches: If a service you use suffers a data breach, your email address and possibly other personal information could be exposed to spammers.
Phishing: If you’ve recently fallen victim to a phishing scam, the attacker could be using your email address to distribute spam to others.
Public exposure: If your email address is posted publicly on forums, social media, or websites, spammers could pick it up and start sending you unsolicited emails.
Subscriptions: When you subscribe to certain websites, newsletters, or online services, they may sell your email address to third parties.
Temporary fluctuations: Sometimes, you may experience a temporary spike in spam due to a random distribution or a sudden increase in spam campaigns.
How do I stop spam emails permanently?
Unfortunately stopping spam emails permanently is a challenging task, as spammers continually adapt their tactics. Prevention is always key to reducing spam emails.
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