Anti-Spam Software
Unsolicited bulk e-mail (UBE) or more commonly known as Spam is a scourge on the internet and one of the most annoying problems plaguing the World Wide Web today!
Spam filters or anti-spam software are programs designed to analyze your incoming email and, through a series of rules set by the software developer and others added by the user, decide whether the mail that is trying to get into your inbox is legitimate email or just more electronic junk mail filling up your box with the latest "great offer."
Do they work? Yes, of course they do! Good spam filters can block out 90-99% of your UBE. Some spam filters, of course, work better than others and their effectiveness can also be affected by the user settings.
Spam filters filter out key words related to sexual content, weight-loss supplements, penis enlargement, drugs, medical supplies and some of the other common spam content. These programs also allow for users to add their own keywords, email addresses, URLs, and IP addresses to a "blacklist." Most filters will scan for viruses. Blocking and deleting them immediately. Many can even be set to block images and files.
Spammers try to get around filters by misspelling words or replacing letters with punctuation marks, symbols or numbers. Some common examples would be "R0LEX watches" where the O in Rolex is replaced with 0 (zero) or "V!AGRA" or "PEN!S" where the letter I is replaced with an exclamation point.
As the internet has become an important part of doing business in today's world, spam filters, along with virus protection are an important necessity for all types of businesses, both large and small. Business owners not only lose valuable employee time dealing with UBE, but an infected email can damage valuable resources or a company's reputation.
Spammers can even hijack a company's computer(s) and use them to send out more spam that seems as if it is originating from the company itself. There have even been cases of business computer networks unwittingly "hosting" entire websites as well. Can you imagine how hard it would be to rebuild relationships or regain the trust of contacts if your company spread computer viruses or sent spam emails to clients? What about all of the potential clients that now blacklisted your company because you were identified as a spammer by their filters?
During the 2nd Quarter of 2007 The Messaging Anti-Abuse Working Group or MAAWG, in a study that included 240 million mailboxes, concluded that 86.7% of all incoming mail was abusive. Historical data and reports can be found at MAAWG.org.
Can your company afford to waste the time needed to sort through junk email or the potential loss of systems or data to viruses, hijacking or phishing attacks? What about your home? Do you want to lose your personal records or deal with the nightmare of identity theft?
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Låne Penger
