One of the most frustrating parts of managing your inbox, spam emails can quickly flood your account and often prove indiscernible from a legitimate work email. But when the risk of adding viruses to your desktop and phishing are so high, it can be difficult to maintain good email hygiene when attempts to trick you are so convincing.
So, what exactly is spam and what are some simple tips and tricks to make sure that you and your employees are not bothered by it any longer?
Simply put, spam is an unsolicited email that is sent to your address – most often advertising a product or attempting to get you to engage with their product. Named after the infamous Monty Python sketch these are delivered in volume and prove to be infuriating at best and downright dangerous at worst.
Estimated to represent between 80-85% of global email correspondence, many inboxes are able to identify and isolate spam messages to their own folder. But all too often, some communications slip through the net and can result in confusion and potentially compromise your device or infrastructure.
This makes avoiding it a priority. If it is overlooked, it may leave many accounts exposed to frustration, inconvenience, and scamming.
While there is no ‘one size fits all’ solution to managing spam emails on your system, there are a number of best practise approaches that all businesses or individuals can apply. These include-
Setting your filter:
Every decent email provider should have the ability to set a spam filter on your inbox. This helps catch and prevent spam messages from hitting your inbox. However, having too strict a default can result in important messages from clients and colleagues getting caught in the net. Asking your in-house team or a professional provider to take a look at these settings can help you find the right balance.
Avoid Interaction:
The worst thing you can do after opening a spam email is to interact with it in any way. Many emails are designed to offer an ‘opt out’ option if you click a link or provide (or ‘confirm’ as they often put it) personal information. No matter what the page says, never ever interact anything in the body of the email and be sure to mark the sender as ‘spam’ on your system.
Add Tools:
If you are being negatively affected by spam, it can be worth picking up spam filtering tools or extensions for your browser. Using a leading tool can help protect your inbox and other elements of your system into the bargain. Just be sure to fully vet the platform you choose to deploy as some software can be much more trustworthy than others.
Use a bespoke address:
When it comes to taking advantage of offers and subscriptions online, it can be helpful to use a disposable or burner email address. This can help cut dramatically back on the amount of spam you receive and help keep your other emails addresses out of the public eye. With leaks and data breaches proving increasingly commonplace, using alternate emails can help insulate you from additional harm, scams, or exposure, allowing you to browse or interact with sites in peace.
Seek Guidance:
If you are truly struggling with spam, consulting a specialist provider can help you get insight to your problems. This can help you tweak your internal settings, provide best-practise guidance to members of your team interacting with spam emails, or adding elements of your system to help keep you and your customers or clients safe from harm when it comes to interacting online.
If you want to learn more about managing spam in your accounts, our team at Everything Tech is here to help. With many years’ experience providing care to range of businesses, we specialise in dealing with technical roadblocks and ensuring that your system stays obstacle free when it truly matters most.
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If you have any other questions and queries, please do not hesitate to get in touch directly and let our team know exactly what you need to resolve your issues today.
