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E-mail users suffer from spam emails all the time. They aren’t just annoying and result in less productivity, but they can also pose a serious security threat. Spam email got its name from Spam lunch meat known for taking large spaces in stores, it’s usually referred to as something that is unavoidable and repetitive. They are extremely annoying and they may contain harmful links or attachments and malware that once clicked on gets downloaded on your device and starts collecting personal and sensitive information or destroying the device’s system.
Read on to learn about the 3 important facts about email and protection from spam.
Fact #1 – There Are Different Types of Spamming Methods
Spam-support Services
It is believed that there are many online practices and activities out there that support spammers, and they are called spam-support services. They do this by processing products advertised in pop-ups or ads, producing spyware, and sending out website links in spam messages or emails.
Tricking the Bayesian Filters
In order to trick the Bayesian filters, which correlate token use like words with spam and non-spam emails then assess the emails to point out the spam emails by using Bayes’ theorem, spammers put irrelevant and manipulative words that can go undetected by the filters, and this approach is called Bayesian poisoning.
Email Address Harvesting
Here, spammers have to collect the email addresses of the recipients to send them spam emails, and they do that by buying lists from other spammers, or by using a software called “Harvesting Bots” that can search from email addresses on the internet from public data. Also, spammers can collect emails by offering free products and services to valid emails.
Obfuscating Contents
To obfuscate is to make obscure or unclear, and that is exactly what spammers do to the content of the email body. In order to obfuscate the mail content, spammers misspell words or insert characters so that filtering software couldn’t identify that it is spam.
Fact #2-Spam Emails Can Be Detected
Although spam emails are hard to detect sometimes, there are some simple practices that can help in recognizing a spam email in your inbox.
- Check the sender’s email address and look for unknown and suspicious addresses. Most probably these emails are spam.
- Do not click on any links or attachments unless you know the sender as viruses and malware are downloaded on your device through these kinds of links and files.
- Read the email and look for misspelled words or added characters, also check the subject of the email. If you find any grammatical or spelling mistakes in the body or subject of the email, then you need to be cautious.
- If you find the offers unrealistic then you need to think twice before responding. These kinds of spam emails try to steal credentials and sensitive information. Never ever give out passwords, credit card numbers, or any other confidential information via email. Note that official and legitimate businesses never ask for this kind of information.
- Do not reply or unsubscribe to suspicious emails, better safe than sorry.
- Use network security services if you own a business to protect you against cyber attacks. In fact, the professionals at prototypeit.net suggest business owners protect their businesses by using only the highest-end network security services. It’s widely believed that security solutions and recovery plans can secure any sensitive data as cyber attacks are increasing and threatening both small and medium-sized businesses. Businesses running in a safe working environment will continue working on their operations smoothly and maximize uptime.
Fact # 3 – Email Cannot Be Protected by a Single Layer Technology
Email filtration software, when implemented using a single layer technology is not as effective as when it is used as a part of a multi-layered cloud email security solution, so you need to find a comprehensive cloud email security solution, which will keep suspicious messages away from your inbox to protect you from the different forms of cyberattacks.
Nowadays, cyber-attacks are increasing and taking different forms, which makes protecting your email against spam messages and various cyber-attacks a must. If malware and viruses find their way into your computer, then you are at risk of having all of your sensitive information and credentials exposed and misused. Spammers make a fortune out of this illegal business, so they are continuously finding alternative ways to beat the advanced security solutions. Hence, we need to be careful while checking our email and fight the temptations of too good to be true offers to play on the safe side and avoid getting hacked.
