How many spam email messages do you receive in a typical day?

[MichaelCorfman]

Pretty much everyone hates spam. It is common to get way too much of it, and there are no perfect solutions.

For this week's poll, I thought I would ask how many spam messages you receive in a typical day. But besides answering the poll, be sure to share your strategies for minimizing the spam you receive.

Personally, I know that the amount of spam I receive is much smaller than it would otherwise be because we block the ip addresses of known spammers. But that process is not perfect. Sometimes email messages I would want to received are blocked, and many spam messages are not blocked at all. Sometimes I unsubscribe from spam when it is an option, but I only do that when I think the sender is likely to be an organization that honors unsubscribe requests. My personal suspicion is that some unsubscribe processes just take the unsubscribe request as confirmation that the email address works, and so more spam will follow, maybe just from a different sender. Once in a while I even call spammers up to give them grief, most often when I think it is a company that has bought an email list, and might not fully realize that such lists are produced by unethical means.

Michael

[thebookiesoffers]

speaking of emails is there a way to stop GPWA emailing me? I read everything on here so dont need an email as well

[MichaelCorfman]

speaking of emails is there a way to stop GPWA emailing me? I read everything on here so dont need an email as well

I assume you are referring to the email messages vbulletin sends our when you are subscribed to a thread by virtue of having posted in the thread. This can easily be controlled through your personal settings. Here is the process for reviewing and/or changing your settings:

When you are logged in, under "My Account" in the top navigation, select the "My Control Panel" option.

On your control panel page, in the left navigation, select the "General Settings" option.

The page displayed has a section titled "Messaging & Notification" and within that section there is an option titled "Default Thread Subscription Mode."

That option has five possible settings, which are as follows:

1. Do not subscribe
2. Through my control panel only
3. Instantly, using email
4. Daily, using email
5. Weekly, using email

If you don't like your current setting, you can change it. Mine is set to "Instantly, using email" which I view as helpful to me since when I am not on the forum is let's me know if there is a new post in a thread in which I previously posted, although just after the first new post since I last logged in. That's actually how I saw you posted a reply to my poll asking a question, so I went back to the forum to answer it.

Michael

[thebookiesoffers]

no the ones we get sent about things like getting the new directory etc, I'd already read the thread when the email came through so just bin them

not saying they are spam btw either

[PROFRBcom]

Where is the option for "too damned many!"

[Renee]

I get around 200 spam emails every day. I usually skim the subject lines in case a legit email made it in there, otherwise I just kinda go through and perm delete them and be done with it. Most of them don't have unsubscribes in them so no point trying really.

[universal4]

For me, there really should have been another choice, but I answered considering only 3 email accounts. (there wasn't enough digits in the choice)

You should see some of the patterns of the spammers. Here is a typical pattern from one single subnet (class c). I will not show the first three octecs.

This pattern is an approximate 3 week period from a single class c. (in fact this particular group was over about a 5 to 7 day span)
34/36/38/41(1-15to2-9)3/4/7/8/11/12/14/19/21/23/24/27/28/31/ Now of course once the first 64 ip's in the subnet is blocked, they move on to the top end, until it is blocked, then they move on to another subnet they rented somewhere else in the country.

I would hope that someone out there is writing some pattern checking algo's to catch this because I have yet to test any mail server software that does a good job of catching this.

My sincere hope is that Microsoft, Google, Yahoo or AOL is first out of the gate with this kind of checking and blocking. Having a few thousand complaints to the ISP in a short time is absolutely the ONLY thing that will make them take notice.

Between this and an ever-increasing list of incorrect database entries at ARIN/APNIC/LACNIC etc etc... spam and brute force attacks have no indication of slowing down in the short term.

Rick
Universal4

[thebookiesoffers]

I get around 200 spam emails every day. I usually skim the subject lines in case a legit email made it in there, otherwise I just kinda go through and perm delete them and be done with it. Most of them don't have unsubscribes in them so no point trying really.

if you 'unsubscribe' it tells them it's a real email address so you just get more

[sweetbet]

I get over 40 spam emails every day... easily.. sometimes more. I've been using the same email address for many many years now, so who knows how many dodgy databases its been added to. Most of the emails go straight to my junk mail folder anyway.

[wettFORM.AT]

11 - 20 and I hate it. I used a program and their database were hacked. This is the only reason why I receive these e-mails. The problem is that I used this e-mail for a long time and I don´t want to change it.

[-Shay-]

11 - 20 and I hate it. I used a program and their database were hacked. This is the only reason why I receive these e-mails. The problem is that I used this e-mail for a long time and I don´t want to change it.

A few years back, Mecca Bingo sent out a mass email announcing closure of "inactive" affiliate accounts. Instead of sending individual emails, the person sending the email sent the email and every email address was jammed into the "To" box - which meant that everyone could see everyone else's email address.

Ignite Bingo have done similar in sending emails listing all recipients instead of using the bcc - though this was not an "inactive" account email.

Just those two instances alone put us on many a mailing list.

[golfbettingsystem]

21-40 easily, mostly from SEO firms who clearly don't like to acknowledge instructions to remove from their database

[casinovegas]

10-15 a day. Annoying as hell!

[ocreditor]

Voted 71 to 100 and this is only the spam

There are too many emails to check

[slotplayer]

Voted 71 to 100 and this is only the spam

There are too many emails to check

me too, I'm in 70+ a day but just on one yahoo account. I clean it out almost every morning and do what Rene does, quickly scan the subject and sender. I do opt out of a few here and there but only if it from a legit place.

[edgarf76]

I voted 21-40. Spam is out of control.

[universal4]

Here is another example of ip pattern matching.

What makes this one more interesting is, this all came today, and ALL from the same class c. (last octec shown only)
5/6/16/18/24/25/30/32/48/49/64/65/71/72/85/98/101/136/139/155/170/174/192

The amount of spam I get on a daily basis has seen some heavy increases the past 6 months or so.

Another pattern which is the most worrying is that up until a few months ago, most of the spam I get came to one of three emails used for specific purposes, but the last few months I have seen a few hundred percent increase (yes I stated that correctly) in the email address that I use solely for affiliate program signups.

I have a standard pattern of asking affiliate programs that spam me there where exactly they got the email address.

Many will flat out lie about the answer.

Those that are honest will most often tell me they traded for it, or a friend at another program gave it to them.

ANY ONE that gives out an email address to ANYONE without the express permission of the recipient, is involved in spam and is violating standard acceptable privacy rules or guidelines.

Rick
Universal4

[ocreditor]

me too, I'm in 70+ a day but just on one yahoo account. I clean it out almost every morning and do what Rene does, quickly scan the subject and sender. I do opt out of a few here and there but only if it from a legit place.

me too, but the amount is too massive and its keep growing each month, its a huge time spender !

[Triple7]

+/- 100

[DraftJam]

I would say 1-10, really. Now I think that I'm lucky (looking at the poll results).